THE  LIBRARY 


OF 


THE 


OF 


UNIVERSITY 
CALIFORNIA 


LOS  ANGELES 


;^>"- 


A.NTANANABIVO,  TUB  CAPITAL  OF  MADAGASCAK,   Will!  TUB  PROCESSION   Of   PR 


AND  PKINCES8  BOYAL  PASSING  ALONG  THE  EASTERN   SIDE  OF  THE  CAPITAL. 


rTHREE    VISITS 


TO 


MADAGASCAR 


DUEING  TUB  YKAES 


1853  —  1854  —  1856, 


A  JOURNEY  TO  THE  CAPITAL  ;    WITH  NOTICES  OF  THE  NATURAL 

HISTORY   OF   THE   COUNTRY   AND    OF   THE   PRESENT 

CIVILIZATION   OF   THE   PEOPLE. 


BY   THE 

REV.  WILLIAM  ELLIS,  F.H.S., 

AUTHOR  OF    "POLYNESIAN  RESEARCHES." 


Illustrated  62  OZircrotrcuts  ftom  Ityotoijrap&s,  fcc. 


NEW    YORK: 

HARPER    &    BROTHERS,    PUBLISHERS, 

FRANKLIN    SQUARE. 
1859. 


4t 
' ;  (o  En 


PREFACE. 


THE  cliief  part  of  the  following  pages  was  written  in 
Madagascar.  It  was  my  habit,  whether  traveling  or  re- 
siding in  one  place,  to  note  down,  generally  at  the  close  of 
the  day,  the  impressions  produced  by  the  novel  or  attract- 
ive objects  I  might  have  met  with,  or  the  information  1 
might  have  gathered  from  the  people.  This  record  of  daily 
occurrences  was  from  time  to  time  sent  home  in  the  form 
of  journal  letters;  and  from  these  letters  chiefly  the  follow- 
ing narratives  have  been  prepared. 

More  than  twenty  years  have  elapsed  since  the  last  En- 
glish missionaries  left  Madagascar,  and  during  this  period 
religious  changes  of  the  most  decisive  nature,  and  events 
of  the  highest  and  most  sacred  character,  have  occurred 
among  the  people.  The  imperfect,  and,  at  times,  conflict- 
ing accounts  of  these  events  received  in  England  indicated 
the  desirableness  of  a  personal  visit.  Such  visit  has  been 
made,  and  was,  there  is  every  reason  to  believe,  welcome 
to  the  government  and  people  of  Madagascar ;  while  its  re- 
sults, it  is  hoped,  will  prove  satisfactory  to  their  friends  in 
this  country.  The  visit  proposed  by  Mr.  Cameron  and  my- 
self was  one  of  friendship  to  the  queen  and  people,  not  an 
official  religious  mission,  though  no  objects  were  so  deeply 


484S63 

LIBRARY 


ti  PREFACE. 

interesting  to  us  as  the  religious  state  of  the  people.  For 
observing  this,  ample  opportunities  were  afforded ;  and  on 
this  subject  I  received  much  valuable  information  from  the 
people  themselves ;  part  of  it  exceedingly  painful,  on  ac- 
count of  the  sufferings  it  made  known,  the  rest,  though 
highly  satisfactory  and  full  of  hope,  I  have  not,  for  obvious 
reasons,  included  in  the  narrative  of  my  visits.  The  pro- 
fession of  Christianity  is  not  permitted  by  the  present  gov- 
ermnent  of  Madagascar,  and  statements  acceptable  and  in- 
teresting to  ourselves  might  affect  injuriously  good  men  in 
a  country  where  civil  and  religious  liberty  does  not  exist, 
where  it  is  contrary  to  law  for  a  man  even  to  leave  his 
country  without  permission  from  the  government,  and  where 
the  most  cruel  death  I  heard  of  on  the  coast  had  been  in- 
flicted on  men  who  had  attempted  to  quit  the  country  with- 
out leave  from  their  superiors. 

As  a  friendly  visitor  from  England,  I  was  kindly  re- 
ceived by  the  queen  and  all  classes  of  the  people ;  and 
nothing  could  exceed  the  hospitality  and  attention  shown 
me  on  the  coast,  during  my  journeys,  and  at  the  capital. 
I  have  described  the  novel  and  often  singularly  beautiful 
aspects  of  the  country  through  which  I  passed,  and  the 
chief  incidents  of  my  visits,  as  they  occurred,  leaving  my 
readers  to  form  their  own  opinions  of  the  character  of  the 
people,  their  resources,  and  present  civilization;  which 
would  advance  much  more  rapidly,  and  develop  itself  far 
more  satisfactorily,  were  the  people  not  so  frequently  har- 
assed by  threatening  rumors  of  invasion  from  a  foreign 
power.  The  accounts  comprised  in  the  following  pages  of 


PREFACE.  vii 

my  intercourse  with,  the  people,  especially  with  the  young 
prince,  the  queen's  son,  and  the  heir  to  the  throne,  for  the 
preservation  of  whose  valuable  life  the  affectionate  anxieties 
of  the  people  are  at  times  intensely  excited,  will,  I  most  sin- 
cerely trust,  increase  the  interest  felt  in  the  people  of  Mad- 
agascar, and  particularly  in  the  young  prince  personally, 
by  the  English  generally,  and  more  especially  by  the  re- 
ligious portions  of  the  community. 

The  language  and  physical  character  of  the  people  fre- 
quently suggested  attractive  ethnological  inquiries,  and  the 
new  and  beautiful  plants  which  I  met  with  in  the  forests  or 
plains  not  only  afforded  much  gratification  at  the  time,  but 
have  enabled  me  to  add  a  few  specimens  of  some  that  are 
highly  esteemed  as  rare  and  curious  to  those  already  culti- 
vated in  England.  Besides  those  which  tire  described,  I 
have,  since  the  following  sheets  were  printed,  been  inform- 
ed by  Sir  "W.  J.  Hooker  that  among  the  ouvirandra  which 
I  brought  over  there  has  recently  been  found  a  second  spe- 
cies, the  Ouvirandra  Bernieriana,  bearing  delicately  rose- 
colored  flowers.  This  new  species  Sir  W.  J.  Hooker  has 
described  and  figured  recently  in  the  "Botanical  Maga- 
zine." 

The  map  is  reduced  from  the  outline  of  the  late  Commo- 
dore Owen's  survey. 

I  am  indebted  to  photography  for  the  chief  part  of  the 
illustrations  of  the  volume.  The  different  portraits,  some 
of  which  exhibit  remarkable  heads,  are  all  from  photo- 
graphs taken  in  the  country.  Several  of  the  views,  as  well 
as  the  representations  of  a  number  of  trees  and  plants,  were 


viii  PREFACE. 

obtained  by  the  same  means,  or  from  sketches  made,  with 
one  or  two  exceptions,  while  the  objects  were  before  me. 
The  ouvirandra  was  drawn  from  a  plant  brought  to  this 
country ;  and  I  beg  to  return  my  sincere  thanks  to  the 
proprietors  of  "Knight's  Museum  of  Animated  Nature" 
for  the  use  of  three  illustrations  of  subjects  of  Natural  His- 
tory. 

In  my  remarks  on  the  native  language,  I  have  made  use 
of  the  grammars  of  Messrs.  Baker  and  Griffiths,  but  more 
especially  of  a  valuable  paper  on  the  language  kindly  fur- 
nished for  me  some  years  ago  by  the  late  Kev.  J.  J.  Free- 
man. 

I  also  avail  myself  of  the  present  opportunity  to  ac- 
knowledge iny  obligations  to  Sir  ~W.  J.  Hooker  and  Dr. 
Lindley  for  th*  useful  suggestions  which  they  kindly  of- 
fered, in  directing  my  attention,  previous  to  my  departure 
from  England,  to  the  botanical  treasures  which  Madagascar 
was  known  to  contain.  Nor  would  I  omit  on  this  occasion 
to  express  my  grateful  sense  of  the  hospitality  and  kind- 
ness of  His  Excellency  Sir  James  Higginson,  governor  of 
Mauritius  at  the  time  of  my  visit,  to  General  Sutherland 
and  General  Hay,  the  late  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Kelsey,  the  Kev. 
J.  Le  Brurf,  and  Messrs.  1'Estrange,  as  well  as  that  of  other 
friends  in  Mauritius  and  at  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope. 

The  kindness  evinced  by  these  friends  was  not  only 
gratifying  to  myself  personally,  as  a  stranger  among  them, 
but  also  highly  encouraging  as  an  expression  of  the  deep 
interest  felt  in  the  welfare  of  the  people  to  whom  my  visits 
were  directed.  ^  E< 

Hoddesden,  October,  1858. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Brief  historical  Introduction. — Treaty  between  the'English  and  Malagasy 
for  the  Abolition  of  the  Slave-trade. — Introduction  of  useful  Arts,  Let- 
ters, and  the  Knowledge  of  the  Christian  Keligion. — Death  of  Radanm 
— Prohibition  of  Religious  Teaching. — Departure  of  the  Missionaries. — 
French  and  English  Attack  on  Tamatave. — Severe  Persecution  of  the 
Christians. — Conversion  of  the  Princes. — Departure  of  the  Author  from 
England  for  Madagascar. — Voyage  to  St.  Vincent's. — Ascension. — The 
Cape  of  Good  Hope. — Public  Rejoicings  at  Cape  Town. — The  School- 
children's  Feast.  —  Last  Sunday  on  board  the  Indiana.  —  Arrival  at 
Port  Louis.  —  Reports  of  the  continued  Sufferings  of  the  Christians  in 
Madagascar Page  17 

CHAPTER  II. 

Departure  from  Port  Louis. — Stormy  Voyage. — Arrival  at  Tamatave. — 
Appearance  of  the  Village. — The  Harbor-master  and  his  Officers. — Let- 
ters sent  to  the  Capital. — Invitation  to  the  Shore. — Welcome  from  the 
Officers  and  People.  —  Native  Custom-house.  —  The  Harbor-master's 
Dwelling. — Important  Conversation  with  some  of  the  chief  Officers  of 
the  Port  respecting  the  Intentions  of  the  English. — Conversation  respect- 
ing the  Christians. — Curious  Mode  of  taking  Snuff. — Analogies  between 
the  Polynesian  and  Malagasy  Languages. — Appearance  and  Dress  of  the 
People. — The  Trade  of  the  Island. — Feelings  of  the  Native  Christians. — 
Our  Annoyances  on  board  the  Ship. — New  Plants  and  Flowers. — Tlia 
Ouvirandra  fenestralis. — Letters  from  the  Capital. — Hospitality  on  Shore. 
— Departure  from  Tamatave. — Arrival  at  Mauritius 34 

CHAPTER  III. 

Compensation  sent  to  the  Queen  of  Madagascar. — Situation  of  Port  Louis. 
— Cosmopolitan  Aspect  of  its  Inhabitants. — Designation  of  the  Shops. — 
Number  and  splendid  Appearance  of  the  Trees  and  Flowers  of  Port  Louis. 
— Description  of  the  Bazar.  —  Exhibition  of  the  Society  of  Agriculture 
and  Arts. — Arrival  of  the  Survivors  of  the  Wreck  of  the  Meridian. — Hos- 
pitality and  Munificence  of  the  Inhabitants  of  Mauritius. — Testimonial  to 
Captain  Ludlow. — Religious  Services  for  the  Seamen. — Visit  to  Moka. — 


x  CONTENTS. 

Residence  of  the  late  Dr.  Thorn. — Ascent  of  the  Pouce  Mountain,  and 
View  from  the  Summit.— Plant-hunting  in  the  Woods. — Return  of  Mr. 
Cameron  from  Madagascar.  —  Terms  on  which  the  Trade  of  foreign 
Countries  with  Madagascar  was  renewed. — Letter  to  Foreigners  from  the 
Queen's  Secretary Page  69 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Visit  to  the  Governor  at  Reduit. — Luxuriance  of  Tropical  Vegetation. — 
Plants  and  Flowers  from  Europe  and  Asia. — Arrival  of  a  Missionary  from 
India. — Proposed  Efforts  for  the  religious  Instruction  of  the  Coolies. — 
Efforts  on  behalf  of  the  Creole  Population  of  Grande  Riviere. — Photog- 
raphy in  the  Tropics. — Visit  to  Mr.  Che'ron  at  Plaines  Wilhelms. — Fete 
of  the  Children  in  the  School. — Sugar-works  on  the  Estate. — Place  of 
Worship  for  the  Malagasy. — Excursion  to  the  Country. — Spice  Planta- 
tions at  Grande  Donjon. — Preparations  for  the  Feast  of  the  New  Year. — 
Permission  given  to  bury  the  Skulls  of  English  and  Frenchmen  fixed  on 
Poles  at  Tamatave. — Visit  to  Beau  Bassin  and  Wolmar. — Magnificent 
Species  of  Artocarpus.  —  Effects  of  frequent  Hurricanes. — Heat  of  the 
Weather. — Preparation  for  a  Hurricane. — Visit  to  the  Royal  Gardens  at 
Pamplemouses. — Splendid  Avenue  of  Palms. — Missionary  Stations  in  the 
Country. — Missionary  Anniversary  at  Port  Louis. — The  Cemetery. — 
Fearful  Ravages  of  the  Cholera  at  Mauritius. — Departure  for  Madagas- 
car   98 

CHAPTER  V. 

Second  Voyage  to  Madagascar. — Quarantine  on  account  of  the  Cholera  at 
Mauritius. — Residence  on  Shore. — Visit  to  a  sick  Chief. — His  Secretary. 
— Presents  from  the  People. — Correspondence  with  the  Government  at 
the  Capital. — Hospitality  of  M.  Provint. — Evening  Walks. — Drawers  of 
Water. — Cattle-market. — Mode  of  embarking  and  landing  Cattle. — Ar- 
ticles sold  in  the  daily  Market. — House  of  the  Son  of  the  Chief  Judge. — 
The  national  Festival  of  tfce  New  Year. — Presents. — Visitors  from  the 
Capital. — Annual  Festival  Dinner  by  the  Governor. — Dresses  of  the 
Company. — Eating  of  the  Jaka  preserved  since  the  last  annual  Festival. 
—Accounts  of  the  destructive  Progress  of  the  Cholera  at  Mauritius. — 
Death  of  Mr.  Kelsey.— Visit  to  the  Capital  prohibited  on  account  of  the 
Cholera  at  Mauritius. — Astonishment  of  the  Natives  on  witnessing  the 
Effects  of  Photography. — Remarkable  Countenances  of  many  of  the  Peo- 
ple.—  Application  for  Medicine. — Toothaches. — Varieties  of  native 
Medicine. — Poisonous  Fish. — Serpents. — Habits  of  the  Aye- Aye ....  133 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Domestic  Slavery  in  Madagascar. — Prices  of  Slaves. — Modes  of  Punishment. 
— Numbers  of  Slaves. — Native  Manufactures. — Rofia  Cloth. — Native  Bask- 


CONTENTS.  xi 

cts. — Fondness  of  Natives  for  Barter. — Conversations  with  the  People. — 
Desire  after  Education. — Historical  Notice  of  the  Persecution  of  the  Chris- 
tians.— Simple  Scriptural  Character  of  their  Faith. — Testimonies  in  their 
Favor. — Scriptural  Basis  of  their  religious  Organizations  and  Observances. 
— Social  Gatherings. — Perils  to  which  they  have  been  exposed. — Public 
Confessions. — Constancy  unto  Death. — Nature  and  Severity  of  their  Pun- 
ishments.— Numbers  who  have  suffered  on  account  of  their  Religion. — Ex- 
ecutions in  1849. — Latest  Edict  against  Christian  Observances. — Opinions 
of  the  Natives  which  render  Christianity  peculiarly  criminal  in  the  Estima- 
tion of  the  Hcr.then. — Claims  of  the  Christians  to  Sympathy  and  Com- 
passion  Page  173 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Journey  from  Tamatave  to  Foule  Pointe. — Native  Gardens. — Photography 
in  the  Forest. — Novel  Aspects  of  the  Vegetation. — Native  Lodgings. — 
Malagasy  Travelers. — Abundant  and  beautiful  Orchidaceous  Plants. — 
Angraecum  superbum. — A.  sesquipedale. — Native  Lizards  and  Birds. — 
Arrival  at  Foule  Pointe. — Native  Accommodations  and  Hospitality. — 
Pleasant  Intercourse  with  the  People. — Hospitality  of  the  Residents. — 
Interview  with  the  Governor. — Brief  Notice  of  Benyowsky. — Return  to 
Tamatave. — Last  Night  on  Shore. — Affectionate  Interest  of  the  Natives. 
— Early  Morning  Embarkation. — Last  View  of  the  Land. — Arrival  at 
Mauritius. — Departure  for  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope 197 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

Visit  to  the  Missionary  Settlements  in  the  Cape  Colony. — Journey  to  Paarl. 
— African  Omnibuses. — Driving  ten  in  hand. — Intercourse  with  an  aged 
Missionary. — Departure  from  Cape  Town. — Accident  on  the  Road. — 
Aspect  of  the  Country. — Variety  and  Abundance  of  Flowers  and  Fruits. 
—  Zurbraak. — An  African  Congregation. — The  Montague  Pass. — Os- 
triches.— Extent  and  Beauty  of  the  Cango  Caverns. — Hospitality  of  a 
Negro  Woman. — Matzie's  Riviere. — Settlement  of  African  Christians. — . 
Spirited  Conduct  of  the  People  of  Oudshorn. — Journey  across  the  Desert. 
— Graaf  Reynet. — Fruits  of  Frugality  and  Industry. — Flight  of  Locusts. 
— Large  Herds  of  Springboks. — Kindness  of  Mr.  Gilfillan,  Wonder  Hill. 
— Encampment  on  the  Banks  of  the  Orange  River. — Subsidence  of  the 
Waters. — Journey  to  Philipolis. — Sunday  with  the  Griquas. — State  and 
Prospects  of  the  People. — Hospitality  of  the  Boers. — Sheep-shearing  in 
South  Africa. — Cradock. — Disease  among  the  Cattle. — Orange  Grove. — 
Venomous  Reptiles. — Anecdotes  of  Caffres.— Visit  to  Mr.  Hart  at  Glen 
Avon ..  222 


xii  ^      CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Journey  to  Blinkwater. — Beacon  Hill. — Intercourse  with  Mr.  Van  Rover 
and  the  People. — Arrival  at  Philipton. — Venomous  Serpents. — Instances 
of  their  Power  over  their  Prey. — Intercourse  with  the  People  of  the  Set- 
tlement.— Gratifying  Effects  of  the  Visit  from  the  Governor  of  the  Colo- 
ny.— Sunday  at  the  Kat  River. ---Farewell  View  of  the  Settlement. — 
Knapp's  Hope  in  Caft'reland. — Site  of  Dr.  Vanderkemp's  earliest  Labors 
among  the  Caffres. — King  William's  Town. — Agreeable  Intercourse  witli 
Mr.  Brownlee  and  Jan  Tzatzoe. — V'sit  to  Peelton. — Effects  of  the  La- 
bors and  Influence  of  Mr.  Birt. — Journey  to  Graham's  Town. — State  of 
the  People. — Port  Elizabeth. — Visits  to  Uitenhage  and  Bethelsdorp. — 
Hospitality  of  the  People  at  Hankey. — Their  Recollections  of  the  Past. — 
Return  to  Cape  Town. — Review  of  the  Events  and  Objects  of  our  Jour- 
.  ney. — Reflections  on  the  State  and  Prospects  of  the  Colored  Population 
of  the  Colony. — Return  to  England Page  25G 

CHAPTER  X. 

Overland  Route  to  Pointe  de  Galle. — Detention  in  Ceylon. — Voyage  to 
Mauritius. — Arrival  in  Madagascar. — Signs  of  increasing  Traffic  at  Tama- 
tave. — First  Night  on  shore. — General  Fondness  of  the  People  for  Music. 
— Introduction  of  the  Violin. — Dinner  with  the  Governor. — Deaths  of 
former  Friends. — Applications  for  Medicine. — Presents  from  the  Princes. 
— Visit  from  the  Governor  and  Suite. — Astonishment  excited  by  the  Elec- 
tric Telegraph. — The  Queen's  Preference  for  running  Messengers  rather 
than  the  Wires. — Native  Work  in  Iron. — Iron-smelting. — Native  Smiths. 
— Message  of  Condolence  from  the  Queen  to  a  bereaved  Family  at  Tama- 
tave. — Mode  of  estimating  the  Worth  of  the  deceased. — Homage  to  the 
dead. — Scenes  of  Riot  and  Drunkenness. — The  Governor's  Dinner  to  the 
Officers  from  the  Capital. — Bearers  engaged  for  the  Journey. — The  Gov- 
ernment Seamstresses 280 

CHAPTER  XI. 

Departure  from  Tamatave. — Slaughter  of  an  Ox,  and  subsequent  Rejoicing. 
— Arrival  of  Sodra. — Number  of  our  Parry. — Native  Officers. — Dwell- 
ings of  the  People.— Native  Hospitality. — Forest  Explorations,  and  new 
Plants  and  Flowers. — Beautiful  Lake  Scenery. — The  Bird  beloved  by 
Cattle, — Aspect  of  Andevorandro,  and  Occupations  of  the  People. — Voy- 
nge  on  the  Iharoka. — The  RofiaPalm. — Magnificent  Astrapaea  Trees. — 
Speeches  on  offering  Presents. — Interview  with  an  Officer  from  the  Capi- 
tal.— Retail  of  spirituous  Liquors. — Aspect  of  the  distant  Country. — 
Apprehensions  from  Crocodiles. — Size,  Habits,  and  Ferocity  of  Croco- 
diles.— Crocodiles'  Eggs  collected  for  Food  or  Sale  in  the  Markets. — 
Perils  and  Privations  of  a  Party  of  Christian  Fugitives. — The  hot  Springs 


CONTENTS.  xiii 

at  Ranomafana. — Native  Music. — Continuance  of  Rain. — Physical  Ap- 
pearance of  the  People,  and  Modes  of  dressing  their  Hair. — Appearance 
of  the  Rocks. — The  Traveler's-tree,  its  magnificent  Form  and  varied 
Uses. — Meals  on  the  Journey. — Exceedingly  difficult  Roads. — Objects  of 
Reverence  or  Worship Page  303 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Beauty  of  the  Mountain  Scenery. — Mode  of  catching  a  Bullock. — Charms 
against  evil  Dreams. — Tomb  of  a  Chief. — Weeping-place  of  the  Hovas. 
— Beautiful  Forms  of  Growth  of  the  Bamboo. — Wild  Cattle  and  wild 
Boars. — Former  Hunting-excursions  in  Madagascar. — Frightful  Roads. 
— The  great  Forest  of  Alamazaotra. — Magnitude  of  the  Trees,  Beauty  of 
the  Flowers,  and  Rarity  of  the  Ferns. — The  Ferry  of  Mangoro. — Milita- 
ry Salute. — Friends  from  the  Capital. — Breakfast  with  a  Hova  Family. — 
Prince  Ramonja's  Village. — Salutation  of  his  aged  Nurse. — Presents  from 
his  Tenantry. — Extent  and  Beauty  of  the  Valley  of  Angavo. — The  Mount- 
ain Pass  and  Fortress. — Village  Market. — Locusts  caught  and  preserved 
for  Food. — Houses  of  Ankova. — First  Night  in  a  Hova  Village. — Depre- 
dations of  the  Rats  and  Mice. — The  feudal-looking  Village  of  Ambato- 
manga. — Accommodations  and  Lodging. — Friends  from  the  Capital. — 
Tombs  of  the  Hovas. — Interior  of  the  House  at  Amboipo. — Native  Silk- 
weaving 342 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

Arrival  of  the  Queen's  Officers. — Entry  to  the  Capital. — Extent  and  Ap- 
pearance of  Antananarivo. — Palace  and  chief  Buildings. — Intricacy  of  the 
Roads. — Description  of  the  House  and  Accommodation  provided  by  the 
Queen. — Welcome  on  arriving. — Salubrity  of  the  Climate. — Munificent 
Present  from  the  Queen. — Visit  from  the  Prince  Royal. — His  Person  and 
Dress. — His  Estimate  of  the  English. — The  Meaning  of  Protection. — In- 
ducements offered  to  him  to  become  a  Roman  Catholic. — Prince  Ramonja. 
— Message  from  the  Queen. — Satisfaction  of  the  Court  with  the  Friendship 
of  England. — Affecting  Interview  with  the  Family  of  a  former  Friend. — 
Presents  from  the  Prince  and  Princess,  and  the  chief  Nobles. — Excursion 
with  the  Prince. — Native-built  stone  Bridges. — The  silver  Spear. — Pal- 
ace of  Isoaicrana. — Places  of  Execution. — Excursion  with  the  Prince  and 
Princess. — Procession  and  Music. — Princess's  Figure,  Dress,  and  Palan- 
quin.— Culture  of  the  Vine. — Simple  and  primitive  Homage  of  the  Vil- 
lagers to  their  Rulers. — Inquiries  of  the  Princess  respecting  the  Royal 
Family  of  England. — Music. — English  National  Anthem. — Dancing. — 
Military  Encampments. — Request  of  a  Slave...., 379 


xiv  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Audience  of  the  Queen  at  the  Palace. — Salutation  to  the  Queen. — Allusion 
to  Presentation  to  Queen  Victoria. — Offering  of  the  Hasina. — Declara- 
tion of  the  Friendship  of  the  English  toward  the  Malagasy. — The  Queen's 
Reply  relative  to  the  Constancy  of  the  English. — Assurance  of  Friend- 
ship and  Good-will  from  the  English  Government. — Desire  of  the  Queen 
for  Amity  with  all  Nations. — Description  of  the  Palace. — The  Queen's 
Appearance,  Dress,  and  regal  State. — The  Members  of  her  Court. — 
Satisfaction  of  the  Queen  with  my  Visit. — Breakfast  with  M.  Laborde. — 
Conversations  with  the  Prince. — Wealth  of  Malagasy  Nobles. — Dinner 
given  by  the  Queen. — Number  of  Dishes. —  Native  Plate. —  Music. — 
Speeches  after  Dinner. —  Sovereign  Rights  of  Nations. — Visits  of  the 
Sick. — Intercourse  with  Natives  who  had  visited  Bourbon. — Photographic 
Difficulties. — Presents  for  the  Queen. — Portraits  of  the  Queen  and  Prince 
Consort  peculiarly  gratifying. — Invitation  to  the  Palace. — Music. — Saka- 
lave  Dance. — Native  and  European  Dances. — Gorgeous  and  splendid  Cos- 
tume of  the  Court Page  410 

CHAPTER  XV. 

Visit  from  the  Prince. — Letter  to  the  Queen. — Message  and  Presents  from 
the  Queen. — Regrets  on  account  of  my  approaching  Departure. — Visits 
to  the  Sick. — Arrangements  of  the  native  Dwellings. — Social  Affec- 
tions.— Portrait  of  the  Prince. — Conversations  with  the  Prince. — Aston- 
ishment and  Delight  of  the  Prince  and  Princess  with  the  Photographic 
Process. — Breakfast  with  the  Prince  and  Princess.  —  Conversati  n. — 
Portraits  of  Members  of  the  Malagasy  Court. — Proposal  of  the  Prince 
and  Princess  and  their  Friends  to  spend  the  last  Evening  of  my  Stay  in 
the  Capital  at  my  House. — The  Prince's  Band. — Interesting  Conversa- 
tion.— Why  the  People  of  England  love  their  Queen. — Security  of  God's 
Protection. — Desire  of  the  Youth  of  the  Country  after  Knowledge. — 
Possibility  of  a  future  College  in  the  Capital. — Departure  of  t  e  Guests. 
— Intercourse  with  beloved  Friends. — Bearers  provided  by  the  Queen. — 
Conversation  and  refined  Attention  of  the  Prince. — Departure  from  the 
Capital  accompanied  by  the  Prince  and  Nobles. — Affecting  Spectacle  of 
a  Prisoner. — Parting  with  the  Prince  and  his  Friends. — Reflections  on 
the  Visit. — Recent  Events. — Sufferings  and  Constancy  of  the  Christians. 
— Martyrdom  in  1849. — Recollections  of  the  Prince. — Estimate  of  his 
Character 441 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

Breakfast  at  Amboilefo. — Intercourse  with  Friends  from  the  Capital. — 
Hospitality  at  Prince  Ramonja's  Village. — New  Plants  collected. — Lodg- 
ing in  (he  Forest  of  Alamazaotra. — Noise  of  the  Monkeys  or  Lemurs 


CONTENTS.  xv 

Lycopodiums  and  other  Plants. — Heavy  Kains. — Extreme  Difficulty  of 
Traveling  in  the  Forest. — Meeting  with  French  Priests  and  Merchants. — 
Acceptable  Collection  of  Plants. — New  Species  of  Platyceruin  or  Stag's- 
horn  Fern. — Arrival  at  Tamatave. — Visit  to  the  Locality  of  the  Ouvi- 
randra  Fenestralis. — Crocodiles. — Kindness  experienced  at  Tamatave. — 
Arrival  of  the  Castro. — Presents  from  the  Queen. — Departure  from 
Madagascar. — Hospitality  at  Mauritius. — Storm  on  the  Ocean. — Kescue 
of  two  shipwrecked  Mariners. — Remarkable  Meeting  with  a  Native  of 
the  Sandwich  Islands. — Safe  Arrival  in  England Page  475 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS, 


PAGK 

Map  of  Madagascar 1 

View  of  the  Capital,  and  Procession Frontispiece. 

Harbor-master's  House,  Tamatavc 43 

Lace-leaf  Plant  (Ouvirandra  fenestralis) 62 

African  Palm-tree 77 

Artocarpus  inteyrifolia,  or  Jack-tree 117 

Female  Slaves  drawing  "Water  at  the  Well 139 

Pandanus-trees  and  Cattle-pen 143 

Portraits  of  Hova  Officers,  etc 152 

Portrait  of  Hova  Woman  and  Betsimasaraka  Woman 1G1 

Portrait  of  Hova  Officer 164 

The  Aye-Aye 171 

Modes  of  punishing  Slaves 175 

Forest-tree,  with  Orchidaceous  Plants 200 

Mode  of  Traveling,  and  Angrcecum  sesquipedale 207 

African  Aloes  and  Zamia 274 

Iron-smelting  and  Native  Smiths 294 

Rice  Granary 314 

Group  of  the  Traveler's-tree 333 

Idol 341 

Travelers  in  the  great  Forest  of  Alamazaotra 353 

Mode  of  catching  Locusts 367 

Fahitra 369 

Audience  of  the  Queen  at  the  Palace 418 

Portraits  of  the  Prince  and  Princess  Koyal 452 

Portraits  of  Hova  Princess  and  Officers 457 

The  Spiny  Tenrec 476 

The  Lemur 480 

Street  in  Tamatave 486 


VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR,  &c. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Brief  historical  Introduction. — Treaty  between  the  English  and  Malagasy 
for  the  Abolition  of  the  Slave-trade. — Introduction  of  useful  Arts,  Let- 
ters, and  the  Knowledge  of  the  Christian  Religion. — Death  of  Radama. 
— Prohibition  of  Religious  Teaching. — Departure  of  the  Missionaries. — 
French  and  English  Attack  on  Tamatave. — Severe  Persecution  of  the 
Christians. — Conversion  of  the  Princes. — Departure  of  the  Author  from 
England  for  Madagascar. — Voyage  to  St.  Vincent's. — Ascension. — The 
Cape  of  Good  Hope. — Public  Rejoicings  at  Cape  Town. — The  School- 
children's  Feast. — Last  Sunday  on  board  the  "Indiana." — Arrival  at 
Port  Louis.  —  Reports  of  the  continued  Sufferings  of  the  Christians  in 
Madagascar. 

THE  Island  of  Madagascar,  extending  over  an  area  larger 
than  that  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  combined,  and  in- 
habited by  more  than  three  millions  of  people,  has  at  differ- 
ent periods  attracted  the  notice  of  the  chief  maritime  nations 
of  Europe,  but,  with  the  exception  of  a  short  period  in  the 
early  part  of  the  seventeenth  century,  it  is  only  since  our 
possession  of  Mauritius,  and  the  subsequent  treaty  of  friend- 
ship and  alliance  entered  into  between  the  late  king  Eada- 
ma  and  the  Governor  of  Mauritius  in  1817,  that  our  own 
countrymen  have  given  much  attention  to  the*island  or  its 
inhabitants. 

In  their  treaty  with  Eadama,  whom  the  English  chose  to 
regard  as  the  supreme  ruler  of  the  country,  they  sought 
chiefly  the  abolition  of  the  slave-trade,  and  in  order  to  com- 
pensate the  king  and  his  chiefs  for  the  loss  which  this  meas- 
ure would  entail  upon  them,  and  to  secure  their  co-opera- 
tion in  rendering  it  effectual,  an  annual  payment  was  made 

B 


18  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  i. 

by  the  British  government  to  the  king.  This  payment  con- 
sisted partly  of  ammunition  and  arms,  and  men  were  sent  to 
Madagascar  to  instruct  the  native  soldiers  in  the  use  of  fire- 
arms and  in  military  tactics.  To  the  arms  and  discipline 
thus  supplied,  and  used  with  a  wanton  disregard  of  human 
life  and  human  suffering,  happily  unknown  in  warfare 
among  civilized  nations,  are  to  be  ascribed  much  of  Kada- 
ma's  success  in  extending  the  dominion  of  the  Hovas  far  be- 
yond the  central  province  of  Ankova,  its  original  boundary. 
Besides  the  superior  arms  and  training  thus  supplied  to  the 
Malagasy  soldiers,  a  number  of  native  youths  were  received 
on  board  ships  of  the  British  navy,  in  order  that  they  might 
learn  practical  seamanship,  and  be  able  to  act  as  pilots,  or 
to  hold  other  offices  under  their  own  government  at  the  sev- 
eral ports  of  the  island ;  while  others  were  sent  to  England 
for  education,  and  instruction  in  the  arts  of  civilized  life. 

Missionaries  from  the  London- Missionary  Society  reached 
the  coast  of  Madagascar  in  1818 ;  and,  after  the  treaty  with 
the  British  government  had  been  finally  ratified  in  1820, 
they  proceeded  to  the  capital,  and  were  cordially  welcomed 
by  the  king,  who  appeared  still  more  delighted  when  they 
were  followed  by  a  number  of  intelligent  men  sent  out  by 
the  same  society  to  instruct  the  people  in  the  practice  of 
many  of  the  most  useful  arts.  The  strange  and  somewhat 
complex  language  of  the  people  was  acquired  by  the  mis- 
sionaries, who  introduced  an  alphabet  into  the  language,  ar- 
ranged its  grammar,  prepared  elementary  books,  and  trans- 
lated the  EToly  Scriptures  into  the  native  tongue. 

In  the  space  often  years  after  the  settlement  of  the  teach- 
ers at  the  capital,  not  fewer  than  10,000  or  15,000  of  the 
natives  had  learned  to  read,  many  of  them  also  to  write,  and 
a  few  had  made  some  slight  progress  in  English,  at  the  same 
time  that  a  number  professed  themselves  Christians.  "With- 
in the  same  period,  among  the  1000  or  1500  youths  who 
had  been  placed  as  apprentices  under  the  missionary  arti- 


CHAP.  i.  GOOD  EFFECTS  OF  ALLIANCE  WITH  THE  ENGLISH.  19 

sans,  some  had  been  taught  to  work  in  iron,  which  abounds 
in  the  country ;  others  had  been  trained  to  be  carpenters, 
builders,  tanners,  curriers,  shoemakers,  etc.  These  were  some 
of  the  most  satisfactory  results  of  the  king's  alliance  with 
the  English,  and  the  settlement  of  English  missionaries  in 
his  country ;  and  although  the  advantage  of  so  sudden  and 
large  an  increase  of  fire-arms  among  a  people  very  partially 
civilized  may  have  been  questionable,  the  substituting  of  le- 
gitimate and  honorable  commerce  for  the  degrading  traffic 
in  slaves,  the  opening  of  a  way  for  frequent  and  friendly  in- 
tercourse with  foreigners,  the  teaching  of  useful  arts,  the  in- 
troduction of  letters,  with  the  knowledge  of  Christianity  by 
which  this  was  followed,  will  ever  cause  the  treaty  between 
Sir  Eobert  Farquhar  and  the  king  Kadama  to  be  regarded 
as  one  of  the  most  important  events  in  the  modern  history 
of  Madagascar. 

To  his  own  people,  Eadama's  reign  was  one  of  unprece- 
dented prosperity,  though  of  comparatively  short  duration. 
lie  was  a  ruler  greatly  in  advance  of  his  time  and  his  peo- 
ple ;  but  he  died  in  the  year  1828,  at  the  early  age  of  thir- 
ty-six, and  the  enlightening  and  humanizing  influences 
which  were  so  full  of  promise  for  the  nation  appear  in  a 
great  measure  to  have  terminated  with  his  life.  The  ami- 
able and  intelligent  Prince  Eakatobe,  eldest  son  of  Radama's 
eldest  sister,  was  nominated  by  the  king  successor  to  the 
throne,  but  on  the  death  of  Radama  he  was  assassinated, 
and  the  present  ruler  was  raised  to  the  supreme  authority. 
For  a  time  the  schools  and  the  religious  teaching  of  the 
missionaries  were  allowed,  but  it  soon  became  evident  that 
the  policy  of  the  government  was  changed.  The  influence 
of  the  idol-keepers,  and  of  the^  supporters  of  divination  and 
other  superstitions  of  the  country,  was  soon  restored  to  its 
former  supremacy.  In  1835  the  profession  of  the  Christian 
religion  by  any  of  the  Malagasy  was  prohibited ;  it  was  also 
required  that  all  Christian  books  should  be  given  up  to  the 


20  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAE.  CHAT.  i. 

government,  and  in  1836  the  missionaries  and  their  excel- 
lent coadjutors,  the  Christian  artisans,  departed  from  the 
island. 

Eight  or  nine  years  afterward  the  evasion  of  the  queen's 
orders  prohibiting  the  removal  of  natives  from  the  island 
greatly  irritated  the  Malagasy  government,  and  the  appli- 
cation of  the  native  laws  to  Europeans  residing  in  Madagas- 
car, as  a  means  of  maintaining  native  authority,  gave  great 
offense  to  the  foreign  traders  at  Tamatave.  The  latter  ap- 
pealed for  assistance  to  the  English  governor  at  Mauritius, 
and  to  the  French  governor  at  Bourbon ;  and  in  June,  1845, 
one  English  and  two  French  vessels  of  war  went  to  Tama- 
tave to  endeavor  to  adjust  the  differences  and  disputes  ex- 
isting there.  Failing  to  effect  this  by  amicable  conference, 
they  employed  force,  fired  on  the  people,  burned  the  town, 
and  landed  and  attacked  the  fort.  But,  though  they  killed 
and  wounded  a  number  of  the  natives,  they  were  ultimate- 
ly obliged  to  retire  to  their  ships,  leaving  in  the  hands  of 
the  natives  thirteen  of  their  number,  whose  skulls,  accord- 
ing to  the  Malagasy  practice,  were  afterward  fixed  on  poles 
in  front  of  the  fortification  which  they  had  assailed. 

This  aggression,  so  deeply  to  be  deplored,  produced  long 
and  serious  evils.  The  government  prohibited  the  export- 
ation of  every  article  of  native  produce;  and  the  trade  in 
rice  and  cattle — the  latter  so  important  to  Mauritius  and  the 
Isle  of  Bourbon — was  thus  destroyed ;  and  notwithstanding 
the  efforts  of  the  English  admiral  Dacres  in  1848,  and  the 
French  admiral  Cdcile,  to  restore  friendly  relations  between 
those  nations  and  the  Malagasy,  all  amicable  intercourse  en- 
tirely ceased  for  a  period  of  «ight  years. 

Long  before  this  interruption  of  commercial  intercourse 
between  the  natives  and  foreigners,  which  it  was  the  interest 
of  both  parties  to  maintain,  the  queen's  government  had 
shown  its  fixed  determination  not  only  to  arrest  the  prog- 
ress of  Christianity  in  the  country,  but  to  destroy  it  wher- 


CHAP.  i.         FIRST  PERSECUTION  OF  CHRISTIANS.    •  21 

ever  it  might  appear.  Scarcely  had  the  missionaries  left 
the  capital  in  1836,  before  a  number  of  persons  suspected  of 
being  Christians  were  required  to  prove  their  innocence  by 
drinking  the  Tangena,  or  poison-water,  which  to  many  of 
them  proved  fatal. 

In  the  following  year  a  considerable  number  of  the  peo- 
ple were  accused  of  reading  religious  books  and  uniting  in 
Christian  worship.  Several  of  these  were  severely  punish- 
ed by  fine,  imprisonment,  or  unredeemable  slavery;  and 
one  devoted  Christian  woman,  Rasalama,  was  put  to  death. 
In  1838,  Rafaralahy,  a  young  man  who  had  accompanied 
the  first  Malagasy  martyr  to  the  place  of  execution,  shared 
her  fate ;  and  before  the  close  of  the  year,  Rafaravavy,  with 
four  of  her  companions,  who  subsequently  visited  England, 
only  saved  their  lives  by  escaping  from  the  island.  Others 
wandered  from  place  to  place  in  much  suffering  and  immi- 
nent peril,  often  seeking  concealment  and  safety  in  the  al- 
most impervious  forests  and  in  the  dreary  caverns  of  the 
mountains,  until  the  year  1842,  when  sixteen  of  them,  while 
on  their  way  to  the  coast  with  a  view  of  escaping  from  the 
island,  were  betrayed  by  their  guides  and  taken  back  to  the 
capital,  where  nine  of  them  were  cruelly  put  to  death. 

The  effect  of  these  sanguinary  proceedings  seemed  to  be 
the  very  reverse  of  what  the  government  intended.  The 
attention  of  all  classes  was  thereby  drawn  to  the  subject  of 
religion,  and  the  confidence  of  many  in  their  idols  appeared 
greatly  weakened,  while  the  Christians  seemed  to  be  con- 
firmed in  their  faith  by  the  severe  ordeal  through  which  it 
had  sustained  them. 

Among  others  over  whose  minds  the  pretended  power  of 
the  idols  had  ceased  to  operate  was  the  queen's  son,  then  in 
his  seventeenth  year.  In  1846,  after  much  conference  with 
some  of  the  Christians,  this  youthful  prince  was  induced  to 
renounce  the  superstitions  of  his  country.  He  soon  after- 
ward declared  himself  a  Christian,  and  was  baptized ;  and, 


22  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  i. 

whatever  may  be  the  extent  to  which  he  is  himself  the  sub- 
ject of  religious  influence,  he  has  ever  since  proved  a  gen- 
erous, kind,  and  faithful  friend  to  the  Christians.  Through 
his  influence,  and  that  of  others,  Eamonja,  a  prince  of  the 
highest  rank,  being  the  son  of  the  queen's  sister,  was  in- 
duced to  study  the  Bible,  and  ultimately  to  declare  his  con- 
viction of  its  truth.  This  prince  publicly  identified  himself 
with  the  Christians,  and  has  ever  since,  through  all  their 
fearful  vicissitudes  of  peril  and  sorrow,  proved  himself  one 
of  their  most  efficient  and  faithful  friends,  as  well  as  the 
honorable  and  consistent  exemplar  of  their  principles ; 
sometimes  pleading  with  the  queen  on  their  behalf,  and  set- 
ting forth — not  always  without  something  like  success — the 
excellency  and  the  value  of  the  Holy  Scriptures. 

The  sympathy  of  her  son  with  the  Christians,  and  his 
adoption  of  their  faith,  is  said  to  have  been  exceedingly  of- 
fensive to  the  queen,  who  has  regarded  him  as  being  the 
victim  of  the  incantations  or  witchcraft  of  the  Christians. 
This  feeling,  heightened  perhaps  by  unfavorable  representa- 
tions from  the  political  rivals  of  the  prince,  her  son,  may 
have  hastened  the  violent  persecution  which  occurred  in 
the  year  1849.  In  this  fearful  season  of  extreme  trial  more 
than  2000  persons  were  implicated,  many  were  subjected  to 
heavy  punishments,  and  eighteen  individuals,  including 
some  of  high  rank  and  station,  were  put  to  death.  It  was, 
indeed,  a  time  of  the  most  severe  sifting  which  the  perse- 
cuted Church  in  Madagascar  had  yet  been  called  to  pass 
through ;  and  numbers,  as  might  be  expected  during  such 
a  season,  deserted  from  their  ranks.  On  the  other  hand, 
scarcely  had,  the  fierceness  of  their  persecutors  begun  to  sub- 
side before  others  who  had  witnessed  the  uncomplaining 
spirit,  the  patient  suffering,  and  the  heroic  constancy  of  the 
Christians,  were  drawn,  notwithstanding  the  prospect  of  al- 
most inevitable  suffering,  or  death,  to  seek  admission  to 
their  fellowship. 


CHAP.  i.          OBJECTS  OF  THE  AUTHOR'S  VISITS.  23 

Although  since  the  year  1845  there  had  been  but  little 
communication  with  Madagascar,  yet,  whenever  opportu- 
nity offered,  intercourse  had  been  maintained  between  the 
natives  in  the  island  and  their  fellow-sufferers  in  exile  at 
Mauritius.  In  1852  accounts  were  received  from,  parties 
residing  in  Madagascar,  that  political  and  other  favorable 
changes  were  in  progress. 

The  London  Missionary  Society,  by  whom  these  accounts 
were  received,  justly  deeming  them  too  important  to  be 
disregarded,  judged  it  most  expedient,  in  the  first  instance, 
to  seek  further  information  by  specific  inquiries  on  the  spot. 
This  ultimately  led  to  the  visits  since  paid  to  that  country, 
as  well  as  to  South  Africa,  some  of  the  chief  incidents  of 
which  are  narrated  in  the  following  pages. 

Early  in  the -year  1853  I  was  invited,  together  with  Mr. 
Cameron,  then  residing  at  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  to  pro- 
ceed to  Madagascar,  on  a  visit  of  friendship,  in  order  to  as- 
certain, as  far  as  practicable,  the  actual  state  of  the  people 
and  the  views  of  the  government. 

The  people  of  Madagascar  were  well  known  to  Mr.  Cam- 
eron, and  they  had  long  been  subjects  of  great  interest  to 
myself,  not  only  on  account  of  their  own  peculiar  circum- 
stances, but  from  their  resemblance,  in  many  respects,  to 
the  South  Sea  Islanders,  among  whom,  in  my  early  years, 
I  had  spent  an  eventful  portion  of  my  life.  I  was  conse- 
quently not  unwilling  to  devote  my  best  energies  to  a  work 
which  to  many  earnest  minds  appeared  fraught  with  hope- 
ful promise. 

On  the  14th  of  April,  1853, 1  embarked  at  Southampton, 
onboard  the  fine  iron  screw  steam-ship  Indiana,  of  1800 
tons'  burden ;  and  in  the  afternoon  of  the  following  day, 
having  taken  in  our  mails  at  Plymouth,  we  stood  out  to 
sea.  The  evening  became  cold  and  cloudy,  but  many  of 
my  fellow-passengers  remained  on  deck  until  a  late  hour, 


24  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  i. 

watching  the  varied  objects  of  interest  on  the  land,  till  the 
shadows  of  evening,  spreading  over  cliff  and  cove,  conceal- 
ed the  shore  and  all  beyond  it  from  our  view. 

My  own  thoughts  and  feelings  were  very  different  from 
those  with  which,  in  early  life,  I. had,  when  sailing  over  the 
same  course,  looked,  as  I  supposed,  for  the  last  time  on 
England  and  all  its  highly-prized  and  fondly-cherished  as- 
sociations ;  and  I  sought  afresh  to  commit  myself,  and  all 
connected  with  me,  to  His  divine  protection  whose  good- 
ness had  been  hitherto  so  constantly  enjoyed. 

The  wind  in  the  commencement  of  our  voyage  was  light, 
but  we  felt  no  discouragement  on  that  account,  as  we  found 
by  noon  on  the  first  day  that  we  had  traversed  the  space  of 
206  miles.  The  breeze  soon  became  more  favorable,  and 
for  the  first  seven  days  of  our  passage  we  sailed  about  240 
miles  each  day  without  the  aid  of  steam ;  and  when  the 
wind  ceased  we  were  propelled  at  about  the  same  rate  by 
steam  alone.  This  was  my  first  voyage  in  an  ocean  steam- 
er of  such  dimensions ;  and  when  the  water  was  tolerably 
smooth  the  engine-room  became  a  place  of  great  attraction 
to  me,  where  the  wonderful  adjustment  of  the  vast  machin- 
ery and  the  exact  and  easy  working  of  the  whole,  notwith- 
standing the  motion  of  the  sea,  often  excited  intense  ad- 
miration. Our  chief  engineer,  an  intelligent  young  Scotch- 
man, told  me  that  when  using  full  steam  force  the  engine- 
fires  consumed  thirty  tons  of  coal  per  day,  that  the  screw 
made  3540  revolutions  in  the  hour,  that  each  single  revolu- 
tion of  the  screw  propelled  our  unwieldy  iron  vessel  nine- 
teen feet  through  the  water,  and  that  in  ordinary  weather 
our  usual  speed  was  nine  or  ten  miles  an  hour.  Uninter- 
rupted progress  was  not  the  only  advantage  of  our  voyag- 
ing in  a  steam-ship  ;  sixty  gallons  of  beautifully  clear  fresh 
water  were  condensed  every  day,  and  proved  one  of  our 
greatest  luxuries. 

Ten  days  after  leaving  Plymouth  we  reached  the  Island 


CHAP.  i.  EVENINGS  WITHIN  THE  TROPICS.  25 

of  St.  Vincent,  and,  having  replenished  our  fuel^  resumed 
our  voyage  on  the  following  day.  The  difference  of  tem- 
perature, now  that  we  were  within  the  tropics,  had  pro- 
duced so  great  a  change  in  our  habits  and  feelings  that  we 
scarcely  seemed  to  be  the  same  company  who,  less  than  a 
fortnight  before,  had  rarely  ventured  on  deck  without  ex- 
tra covering,  as  a  defense  against  the  wind  or  rain.  Now 
no  visitor  was  so  welcome  as  the  breeze,  for  the  thermome- 
ter sometimes  stood  at  85°  in  the  saloon  at  breakfast-time, 
and  rose  as  the  day  advanced.  Only  the  lightest  clothing 
could  be  endured,  and  the  oppressive  heat  rendered  every 
exertion  a  fatigue.  Few  of  the  passengers,  of  whom  there 
was  a  very  pleasant  company  of  between  seventy  and  eighty 
in  the  cabin,  ever  remained  long  on  deck  during  the  day ; 
and  the  sleeping-places  below  were  many  of  them  during 
the  night  almost  insufferably  hot.  But  the  gorgeous  sun- 
sets and  the  long  long  evenings  were  seasons  of  delightful 
existence.  , 

The  greater  portion  of  the  passengers  spent  most  of  the 
evening  on  deck,  attracted  by  the  cool  and  balmy  air,  the 
tranquil  sea,  the  serene  and  cloudless  sky,  revealing  new 
constellations  and  other  stars  than  had  ever  shone  in  our 
northern  hemisphere.  Conspicuous  among  these  was  al- 
ways seen  the  Southern  Cross,  so  often  leading  the  thoughts 
by  an  irresistible  tendency  away  to  the  contemplation  of 
that  brighter  lustre  by  which  the  Cross  of  Calvary  shall 
ultimately  draw  within  its  hallowed  influence  all  kindreds 
of  men. 

On  the  6th  of  May  we  reached  Ascension,  a  sterile  and 
solitary  island,  rising  to  a  considerable  elevation  in  the 
centre,  and  broken  into  a  number  of  peaks,  on  the  highest 
portions  of  which  light  clouds  were  resting  as  we  approach- 
ed the  land.  The  whole  island  appeared  to  be  one  mass 
of  volcanic  rock  in  various  stages  of  decomposition,  and 
destitute  of  all  vegetation,  excepting  on  the  upper  parts  of 


26  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  i. 

some  of  the  high  land,  where  a  spot,  said  to  be  four  or  five 
miles  from  the  anchorage  and  called  the  Green  Mountain, 
was  partially  covered  with  grass  and  trees.  A  portion  of 
this  Green  Mountain  had  been  brought  under  cultivation, 
yielding  bananas  and  other  tropical  fruits.  Here  a  small 
sanitarium  or  hospital  was  erected,  and  also  a  rustic  sort  of 
country-house,  to  which,  we  were  told,  the  governor  or  offi- 
cers of  the  fleet  at  times  resorted,  as  a  means  of  escape  from 
the  burning  heat  of  the  sands  and  of  the  barren  volcanic 
rocks  of  the  shore. 

The  island  is  used  as  a  naval  station  for  the  vessels  cruis- 
ing on  the  western  coast  of  Africa,  from  which  it  is  distant 
seven  or  eight  hundred  miles.  On  coming  to  the  anchor- 
age we  were  agreeably  surprised  to  see  a  neat  little  village 
or  settlement,  with  a  church  and  a  school-house,  handsome 
barracks,  and  comfortable  -  looking  detached  dwellings, 
shaded  by  verandas.  These,  we  learned,  were  the  officers' 
quarters,  and  beside  them  were  a  number  of  clean-looking 
compact  cottages,  occupied  by  those  connected  with  the  isl- 
and or  the  shipping.  Four  vessels  of  war  were  riding  at 
anchor  when  we  arrived,  and  one  of  them,  the  Penelope,  a 
steam  frigate,  bore  the  flag  of  Admiral  Bruce. 

As  early  as  practicable  on  the  following  morning,  in 
company  with  one  or  two  friends,  I  took  my  photographic 
apparatus  on  shore  and  attempted  some  views  of  the  church, 
school-house,  barracks,  and  other  objects  of  interest ;  but 
when  I  afterward  developed  my  pictures,  though  some  of 
them  came  out  tolerably  well,  I  found  that  they  had  been 
much  too  long  exposed  iri  the  camera,  though  not  half  the 
time  was  allowed  that  would  have  been  requisite  in  En- 
gland. 

While  engaged  with  my  cameras  the  clergyman  of  the 
station  passed  by,  and,  on  his  stopping  to  observe  my  occu- 
pation, we  entered  into  conversation  respecting  the  state  of 
the  island.  From  him  I  learned  that  many  of  the  colored 


CHAP.  i.  TURTLES  AT  ASCENSION.  27 

men  whom  I  saw  abound  were  liberated  negroes  who  had 
been  educated  by  the  missionaries  at  Sierra  Leone,  and  had 
proved  trustworthy  and  well-conducted  men.  The  church 
and  the  school-house  appeared  to  be  neat  and  appropriate 
buildings.  Before  the  former  two  brass  guns,  recently  tak- 
en from  the  slave-depot  at  Lagos,  were  fixed  as  trophies. 

The  turtles  for  which  Ascension  is  so  widely  celebrated 
are  caught  in  large  numbers  along  the  shore,  300  being 
sometimes  taken  in  one  year.  They  are  kept  in  two  large 
ponds  or  inclosures,  ten  or  a  dozen  yards  square,  on  the 
beach;  into  these  the  sea- water  is  admitted  by  openings 
in  the  walls  of  rudely-piled  lava  by  which  they  are  sur- 
rounded. In  these  two  ponds,  we  were  told,  there  were  at 
that  time  from  150  to  200  turtles,  each  weighing  from  100 
to  300  Ibs.  The  turtles  belong  to  the  government,  and  a 
sentinel  is  placed  on  the  adjacent  beach  to  protect  them 
durifig  the  season  in  which  they  resort  to  the  place  to  de- 
posit their  eggs.  On  .the  evening  of  this  day,  which  was 
intensely  hot,  we  returned  to  our  ship,  taking  out  with  us 
in  the  same  boat  a  turtle  that  weighed  300  Ibs.,  which  our 
purser  had  purchased  at  2%d.  per  Ib.  T^e  were  indulged 
with  portions  of  this  luxury  the  next  morning  at  our  break- 
fast-table, partly  in  the  form  of  turtle-steaks,  which,  to  my 
fancy,  very  much  resembled  sinewy  veal  cutlets ;  and  at 
dinner  we  had  fricasseed  turtle-fins,  which  looked  rather 
too  green  and  rich  for  me  to  venture  upon. 

We  entered  Table  Bay  on  the  22d  of  May.  The  neat 
white- walled  villas  stretching  along  at  the  foot  of  the  mount- 
ains, and,  toward  Green  Point,  but  a  short  distance  from 
the  sea,  the  batteries,  the  extensive  African  city  with  its 
flat-roofed  and  white  or  ruddy  ochre-colored  houses,  the 
spires  of  the  different  churches,  the  jetties,  the  numerous 
vessels  in  the  bay,  the  long  and  lofty  flat-topped  Table 
Mountain'  rising  immediately  behind  the  city  to  an  eleva- 
tion of  3582  feet  above  the  sea,  and  the  green  and  woody 


28  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  i. 

aspect  of  the  country  toward  Rondesbosche,  became  succes- 
sively objects  of  attraction  and  pleasure  to  the  many  curious 
or  deeply -interested  gazers  who  watched  the  shore.  It  was 
Sunday,  and,  hastening  from  the  vessel  to  the  residence  of 
Mr.  Thompson,  I  was  happy  to  resort  with  him  and  his 
family  to  the  house  of  God,  to  render  thanks  for  the  pro- 
tection and  blessing  I  had  experienced. 

Considerable  excitement  prevailed  at  this  time  among  all 
classes  at  the  Cape,  in  consequence  of  the  recent  arrival  of 
the  Charter  of  Constitution  for  the  colony,  conveying  to 
the  colonists  the  long-desired  responsibilities  and  benefits 
of  self-government.  Some  few  doubted  whether  the  change 
thus  effected  would  prove  advantageous  to  the  colony,  but 
by  far  the  greater  portion  of  the  community  accustomed  to 
give  expression  to  their  opinions  on  such  subjects  it  was 
regarded  with  feelings  of  unmingled  satisfaction.  The  con- 
stitution itself  was  considered  as  conceived  in  the  most  wise 
and  generous  spirit,  and  the  powers  it  vested  in  local  legis- 
lative bodies,  to  be  created  by  its  authority,  as  ample  and 
efficient  as  the  most  sanguine  advocate  of  improvement  and 
progress  could  desire. 

Two  days  after  our  arrival  the  queen's  birthday  was  cele- 
brated with  unusual  demonstrations  of  loyalty,  and  a  gen- 
eral illumination  of  the  city  at  night.  But  to  me  the  most 
pleasing  part  of  the  proceedings  was  the  treat  given  by  the 
municipality  to  the  children  of  all  the  day  and  Sunday 
schools  in  Cape  Town.  They  were  assembled  on  the  pa- 
rade, where  the  children,  between  3000  and  4000  in  num- 
ber, walked  in  procession  past  the  temporary  erection  in 
which  the  lieutenant-governor  and  his  suite,  with  the  offi- 
cers of  the  municipality,  were  assembled.  The  children  of 
each  school  walked  together,  carrying  flags  on  which  were 
inscribed  the  name  of  their  school,  with  some  appropriate 
motto  or  device.  One  flag — a  very  striking  one  to  me — 
exhibited  two  hands,  a  black  and  a  white  one,  clasped  to- 


CHAP.  i.           CHILDREN'S  FEAST  AT  CAPE  TOWN.  29 

gether.  When  the  children  had  walked  past  the  assembled 
authorities,  they  united  in  singing  the  National  Anthem, 
after  which  the  lieutenant-governor  retired,  and  the  children 
were  conducted  to  their  respective  tents,  pitched  in  dif- 
ferent parts  of  the  ground.  There  they  were  regaled  with 
an  abundant  supply  of  suitable  refreshments,  liberally  fur- 
nished at  the  expense  of  the  municipality — a  pleasing  evi- 
dence of  the  estimation  in  which  the  education  of  the  poorer 
classes  was  held  by  the  authorities  of  the  place.  But  a  still 
more  gratifying  fact  was  the  entire  absence,  among  the 
children  themselves,  of  any  thing  like  estrangement  or  aver- 
sion on  account  of  color.  The  majority  of  the  children 
were  Africans,  but  there  was  also  a  considerable  number 
of  the  children  of  Europeans ;  and  many  times  my  atten- 
tion was  attracted  by  a  little,  sturdy,  woolly -haired  negress 
holding  the  hand  of  a  blue-eyed,  flaxen-haired  girl,  and  both 
looking  up  with  laughing  faces  and  apparently  loving  hearts 
as  they  passed  along.  The  same  perfect  cordiality  was 
manifest  when  they  gathered  round  the  refreshments  in 
the  tents,  or  joined  in  the  hymns  which  they1  sung  before 
departing  from  the  ground. 

Mr.  Cameron,  who,  to  my  great  satisfaction,  had  consent- 
ed to  join  me  in  my  expedition  to  Madagascar,  soon  com- 
pleted his  necessary  preparations,  and  we  left  Table  Bay 
on  the  26th  of  May.  In  passing  the  southern  extremity  of 
the  African  continent  we  found  the  sea  higher  than  I  had 
ever  seen  it,  except  in  passing  Cape  Horn,  and  we  now 
experienced  greater  inconvenience  from  the  motion  of  the 
vessel  than  at  any  other  part  of  the  voyage. 

While  passing  the  Mozambique  Channel  we  had  a  heavy 
gale  of  wind,  which  our  captain  called  a  "  regular  Mozam- 
biquer ;"  but  as  we  traversed  the  Indian  Ocean  the  wind 
was  moderate,  and  our  progress  rapid  as  well  as  pleasant. 
The  discipline  and  order  of  the  ship,  and  the  arrangements 
for  the  passengers  were  admirable  throughout ;  and  we  all 


30  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  i. 

felt  how  much  we  were  indebted  to  Captain  Lambert,  not 
only  for  our  safety  and  progress,  but  for  a  large  measure 
of  the  comfort  we  enjoyed.  Our  Sabbaths  had  been  more 
agreeable  to  the  majority  of  those  on  board  than  is  usually 
the  case  at  sea.  Public  religious  worship  had  been  held 
every  Sunday,  in  the  morning,  on  the  quarter-deck,  at 
which  the  crew  and  firemen,  excepting  only  those  actually 
on  duty,  always  attended,  together  with  the  officers  and 
passengers,  forming  a  considerable  audience.  The  captain 
read  the  Liturgy,  in  a  manner  truly  appropriate ;  after 
which,  being  the  only  minister  of  religion  on  board  except 
an  invalid  clergyman,  I  usually  delivered  a  discourse.  The 
afternoon  I  devoted  to  the  sailors  and  the  men  connected 
with  the  engines,  who  welcomed  my  visits  among  them, 
and  thankfully  received  religious  tracts  and  copies  of  the 
Scriptures,  of  which  I  deeply  regretted  that  I  had  not  a 
more  adequate  supply,  for  very  few  of  the  men  possessed 
either  a  Bible  or  a  Testament.  In  the  evening  a  second 
religious  service  was  held,  attended  chiefly  by  the  passen- 
gers and  stewards  or  cabin  servants. 

The  last  Sabbath  on  board  was  peculiarly  interesting. 
The  day  was  fine,  and  a  large  audience  had  gathered  at  the 
morning  service.  In  the  afternoon,  as  I  was  sitting  on  the 
deck,  three  of  the  crew  came  aft,  and  said  they  were  sent 
by  the  rest  of  the  ship's  company  to  ask,  as  this  was  the 
last  Sunday  I  should  be  on  board,  if  I  could  preach  them 
another  sermon.  I  assured  them  of  my  readiness  to  do  so, 
and,  the  captain  having  expressed  his  approval,  in  about 
half  an  hour  afterward  they  returned  to  say  that  all  was 
ready.  Mr.  Cameron  accompanied  me  to  the  forecastle  be- 
low. The  men  had  prepared  a  sort  of  pulpit  by  placing  a 
seaman's  chest  upright  on  its  end.  Two  ship's  lanterns 
were  suspended,  one  on  each  side  of  this  rude  pulpit,  which 
was  secured  by  seamen  sitting  on  each  side  and  holding 
the  chest  upright  with  their  hands.  The  boatswain,  an  old 


CHAP.  i.  FAREWELL  VISIT  TO  THE  INDIANA.  31 

man-of-war's  man,  sat  by  my  side.  The  berths  and  fore- 
castle were  filled  with  sailors  and  firemen,  who  listened 
with  attention  and  seriousness  to  a  plain  discourse.  The 
captain  was  pleased  with  this  conduct  of  the  men,  and  both 
he  and  the  first  officer  said  it  was  an  unusual  thing  for  sail- 
ors to  request  to  have  religious  worship  among  themselves. 

Daylight,  on  the  7th  of  June,  revealed  to  us  the  fertile 
and  romantic-looking  island  of  Mauritius,  which  we  ap- 
proached from  the  southward,  and,  after  proceeding  along 
its  western  shore,  gazing  with  unspeakable  delight  on  the 
varied  and  picturesque  forms  of  its  lofty  mountains  or  its 
wide  fields  of  sugar-cane,  we  cast  anchor  in  the  harbor  of 
Port  Louis  early  in  the  forenoon,  having  been  little  more 
than  seven  weeks  since  leaving  England.  On  landing  soon 
afterward,  we  were  cordially  welcomed  by  Messrs.  Le  Brun, 
and  by  the  close  of  the  day  found  ourselves  comfortably 
domiciled  beneath  the  hospitable  roof  of  Mr.  Kelsey  and  his 
amiable  family. 

Before  the  vessel  in  which  we  had  sailed  left  Mauritius,  I 
paid  a  farewell  visit  to  the  captain,  officers,  and  passengers, 
and  received  from  every  individual  the  most  cordial  and  af- 
fectionate expressions  of  desire  for  my  welfare.  When  I 
left  the  saloon  I  found  at  the  ship's  side»  a  number  of  the 
inferior  officers,  firemen,  and  sailors,  waiting  to  take  leave 
of  me  and  to  wish  me  God-speed.  I  received  their  willing 
and  hearty  expressions  of  good-will  as  a  reason  for  hope 
.that  some  benefit  had  been  derived  from  my  intercourse 
with  them ;  and,  should  it  ever  be  my  lot  to  make  another 
voyage,  I  shall  think  myself  highly  favored  if  I  sail  with  a 
commander  equally  able,  attentive,  and  obliging,  with  offi- 
cers and  men  as  active  and  steady,  and  with  fellow-passen- 
gers as  agreeable  and  kind-hearted  as  those  on  board  the 
Indiana. 

The  earliest  efforts  of  Mr.  Cameron  and  myself  were  di- 
rected to  ascertaining  the  actual  state  of  Madagascar ;  and 


32  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  i. 

although,  in  reference  to  some  objects  of  inquiry,  the  infor- 
mation we  obtained  was  distinct  and  conclusive,  with  re- 
spect to  others  we  found  the  most  contradictory  reports. 
Among  the  rumors  current  at  the  time,  was  one  in  which 
it  was  unhesitatingly  affirmed  that  the  Queen  of  Madagas- 
car was  dead, -and  that  her  son  had  succeeded  her;  another 
stated  that  the  queen  had  abdicated  in  favor  of  the  prince, 
who  had  renounced  Christianity  as  the  condition  of  his  re- 
ceiving the  crown.  Other  reports  represented  things  as 
much  in  the  same  state  in  which  they  had  been  for  some 
time,  excepting  that  the  people,  though  not  inhospitable  to 
foreigners  shipwrecked  on  their  coast,  were  increasing  their 
defenses  as  if  apprehensive  of  foreign  attack. 

Next  to  Messrs.  Le  Brun,  the  devoted  missionary  pastors 
in  the  island  of  Mauritius,  the  Christian  refugees  from  Mad- 
agascar hastened  to  bid  us  welcome,  and  to  give  us  all  the 
information  they  possessed  respecting  their  country.  From 
them  we  learned  that  the  young  prince  steadily  maintained 
his  profession  of  the  Christian  faith ;  that  the  Christians  in 
the  country,  though  subject  to  great  privation  and  suffering, 
maintained  their  steadfastness  and  increased  in  numbers. 
"We  examined  very  carefully  all  the  letters  which  had  been 
recently  received  from  Madagascar,  and  found  that  ,the  ex- 
pectations of  a  beneficial  change,  slightly  indicated  as  in 
progress  during  the  previous  year,  had  not  been  realized, 
and  that  the  favorable  tidings  forwarded  to  England  had  not 
been  confirmed  by  those  subsequently  received.  We  had 
not  the  slightest  reason  to  doubt  the  veracity  of  the  native 
Christians  in  either  island  with  regard  to  the  accounts  they 
had  transmitted.  They  had  themselves  received  these  re- 
ports, and  had  perhaps  been  deceived  by  those  on  whom 
they  had  depended ;  while  from  internal  evidence  we  were 
led  to  doubt  the  genuineness  of  some  of  the  documents 
which  had  arrived  from  Madagascar. 

The  information  we  obtained  from  the  merchants,  who 


CHAP.  i.  DESIRED  RENEWAL  OF  TRADE.  33 

readily  communicated  what  information  they  possessed,  was 
more  vague  and  unsatisfactory,  and  few  among  them  seem- 
ed to  place  entire"  confidence  in  any  of  the  rumors  in  circu- 
lation. All  wished  most  earnestly  for  the  renewal  of  the 
trade,  and  expressed  their  hopes  that  our  projected  visit 
might  hasten  this  desired  result.  His  excellency  the  gov- 
ernor very  frankly  communicated  to  us  all  he  knew  on  the 
subject,  and,  deeply  sensible  of  the  advantages  that  would 
accrue  to  the  colony  from  the  importation  of  cattle  and  oth- 
er supplies  from  Madagascar,  he  was  naturally  anxious  that 
the  prohibition  on  the  trade  should  be  removed,  but  could 
take  no  steps  toward  the  accomplishment  of  so  desirable  an 
object.  These  views  were  shared  by  the  colonial  secretary, 
and  Major-general  Sutherland,  commander-in-chief  of  the 
forces,  who  kindly  expressed  his  earnest  desire  for  the  suc- 
cess of  our  visit. 

C 


34  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR. 


CHAPTEE  H. 

Departure  from  Port  Louis. — Stormy  Voyage. — Arrival  at  Tamatave. — 
Appearance  of  the  Village. — The  Harbor-master  and  his  Officers. — Let- 
ters sent  to  the  Capital. — Invitation  to  the  Shore. — Welcome  from  the 
Officers  and  People.  —  Native  Custom-house.  —  The  Harbor-master's 
Dwelling. — Important  Conversation  with  some  of  the  chief  Officers  of 
the  Port  respecting  the  Intentions  of  the  English. — Conversation  respect- 
ing the  Christians. — Curious  Mode  of  taking  Snuff. — Analogies  between 
the  Polynesian  and  Malagasy  Languages. — Appearance  and  Dress  of  the 
People. — The  Trade  of  the  Island. — Feelings  of  the  Native  Christians. — 
Our  Annoyances  on  board  the  Ship. — New  Plants  and  Flowers. — The 
Ouvirandra  fenestralis. — Letters  from  the  Capital. — Hospitality  on  Shore. 
— Departure  from  Tamatave. — Arrival  at  Mauritius. 

SOON"  after  midday  on  the  llth  of  July,  Mr.  Cameron  and 
myself,  having  taken  leave  of  our  hospitable  friends  at  Port 
Louis,  embarked  on  board  the  Gregorio,  a  small  schoon- 
er of  about  seventy  tons'  burden,  which  the  merchants  at 
Mauritius  had  hired  for  the  sole  purpose  of  conveying  to 
Madagascar  their  memorial  soliciting  from  the  queen  of  that 
country  the  opening  of  the  trade,  and  in  which  vessel  they 
had  generously  given  us  a  passage.  The  object  sought  by 
this  memorial  was  one  of  great  importance  to  the  colony, 
and,  inclusive  of  the  names  of  the  president  and  members 
of  the  Chamber  of  Commerce,  with  whom  it  originated,  it 
had  received  the  signatures  of  between  two  and  three  hund- 
red of  the  merchants  and  others  residing  in  Mauritius. 

The  day  of  our  departure  was  excessively  hot,  but,  as  the 
wind  was  fair  and  the  water  smooth,  we  passed  swiftly  be- 
tween the  lines  of  merchant- vessels  riding  at  anchor  on  both 
sides  of  the  harbor,  and,  leaving  the  Lazaretto,  where  the 
recently -arrived  ships  were  performing  quarantine,  and  the 


CHAP.  n.  VOYAGE  TO  MADAGASCAR.  35 

bell  buoy  outside,  we  found  ourselves,  in  less  than  an  hour, 
in  the  broad  waters  of  the  Indian  Ocean.  I  could  not  help 
noticing  the  comparatively  quiet  and  easy  manner  in  which 
our  little  craft  put  out  to  sea,  so  different  from  the  activity, 
animation,  and  bustle  on  board  the  large  and  crowded 
steamer.  Our  crew  was  soon  mustered,  as  it  consisted  only 
of  a  very  juvenile  captain,  a  mate,  four  seamen,  a  cook,  and 
a  steward,  in  all  eight  souls,  and  ourselves  as  passengers. 
Our  captain  was  a  native  of  one  of  the  Sechelles,  the  mate 
was  a  Frenchman  from  Bordeaux,  our  sailors  natives  of 
Madagascar,  our  cook  a  Frenchman,  and  the  steward  a  Cre- 
ole from  Mauritius. 

As  we  proceeded  from  the  land,  we  found  that  the  wind, 
though  fair,  had  raised  a  considerable  sea ;  and  the  motion 
of  our  little  cockle-shell  of  a  vessel  was  so  rapid  and  violent, 
as  compared  with  that  of  the  Indiana,  that,  though  anx- 
ious to  keep  on  deck  as  long  as  possible,  we  soon  became 
excessively  sea-sick.  Indeed,  I  do  not  remember,  in  all  my 
voyages,  ever  suffering  more  from  sea-sicknes  than  during 
the  early  part  of  this  passage  to  Madagascar.  For  the  two 
succeeding  days  I  was  scarcely  able  to  leave  my  berth.  In 
the  mean  time  our  fair  wind  had  died  away ;  and,  our  ves- 
sel rolling  violently  in  consequence  of  having  nothing  but 
ballast  on  board,  we  scarcely  moved  through  the  water  a 
couple  of  miles  in  an  hour.  On  the  fifth  day,  toward  even- 
ing, a  light  and  favorable  breeze  sprang  up,  which  inspired 
hopes  of  reaching  our  port  in  a  day  or  two,  as  the  passage 
seldom  occupies  more  than  four  or  five  days ;  during  the 
night  the  ship's  head  was  turned-northward  in  a  direction 
parallel  with  the  coast,  lest  we  should  prove  to  be  nearer  the 
land  than  was  supposed.  But  the  next  morning  was  calm, 
and  we  again  lay  all  day  long  rolling  heavily  under  a  scorch- 
ing sun,  upon  a  sea  as  smooth  as  glass.  Land  was  reported 
as  visible  during  the  day,  but  at  sunset  the  western  horizon, 
where,  if  at  all,  it  should  have  appeared,  presented  an  un- 


36  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  n. 

broken  line  of  sea  and  sky.  These  circumstances  forced 
upon  us  the  conviction  that,  although  at  one  time  it  was 
said  we  were  only  fifteen  miles  from  the  anchorage,  and  at 
another  that  land  was  actually  in  sight,  both  captain  and 
mate  were  probably  doing  little  more  than  guessing  at  our 
position. 

On  the  morning  of  the  17th  we  stood  toward  the  land 
with  a  fair  wind,  but,  on  approaching  the  coast  about  noon, 
near  a  small  island  called  Plumb  Island,  we  found  ourselves 
about  six  or  eight  miles  to  the  north  of  the  entrance  to  the 
port,  with  the  wind  and  sea  driving  us  still  farther  away. 
We  stood  out  to  sea  again  for  a  couple  of  hours,  and  then 
returned ;  but  finding  ourselves,  on  nearing  the  land,  still 
farther  from  our  port,  with  the  wind  increasing  against  us, 
our  vessel  was  once  more  turned  toward  the  open  sea.  As 
we  sailed  as  near  to  the  wind  as  possible,  and  the  sea  was 
very  rough,  the  motion  of  our  light  ship  was  exceedingly 
violent,  and  the  effect  of  this  upon  my  own  feelings  was 
heightened  by  the  wretched  accommodation  on  board,  and 
by  my  remembrance  of  having,  in  one  of  my  former  voy- 
ages, been  kept  twenty-one  days  out  of  harbor  in  conse- 
quence of  having,  in  a  heavy  gale  of  wind,  made  the  land 
on  the  coast  of  New  Holland  four  miles  to  leeward  of  the 
port. 

The  following  night,  so  far  as  regarded  external  circum- 
stances, was  miserable  enough.  The  howling  of  the  wind, 
the  dashing  of  the  spray  over  our  ship  and  into  our  cabin, 
the  rattling  of  seats  and  boxes  about  the  floor,  the  banging 
of  cupboard-doors  without  fastenings,  the  flickering  of  a  dim 
dirty  lamp  swinging  to  and  fro,  and  the  frequent  inspection 
of  the  chart  by  the  captain,  made  the  hours  of  darkness  pass 
very  heavily.  But  it  was  not  in  relation  to  my  own  person- 
al experience  alone  that  these  circumstances  imparted  their 
own  dismal  character  to  the  tenor  of  my  thoughts,  for  I 
found  myself  reflecting  on  the  cheerless  manner  in  which 


CHAP.  ii.  APPEARANCE  OF  TAMATAVE.  37 

the  last  hours  of  one  of  the  devoted  missionaries  to  Mada- 
gascar, Mr.  Jeffreys,  were  spent,  who,  after  committing  to  the 
deep  his  eldest  child,  died  during  a  voyage  from  Madagas- 
car to  Mauritius  in  the  miserable  hold  of  a  bullock-ship, 
stretched  on  a  mattress  spread  upon  bags  of  rice,  and  sepa- 
rated only  by  bags  of  rice  from  the  cattle  in  the  hold ;  and, 
although  the  circumstances  in  which  our  last  hours  may  be 
passed  are  of  little  consequence  in  comparison  with  the  re- 
sults to  which  they  tend,  I  certainly  felt  at  the  time  that  I 
should  not  like  to  pass  my  last  night  in  such  a  cabin,  or  to 
die  under  such  circumstances. 

At  midnight  our  course  was  changed,  and  we  steered 
again  toward  the  shore  with  the  wind  slightly  favorable. 
By  eight  o'clock  the  land  was  visible,  notwithstanding  clouds 
and  rain.  At  noon  we  were  near  enough  to  see  the  hollow 
of  the  line  of  coast  on  which  Tamatave  is  situated,  and  to 
distinguish  the  white  native  flag  floating  over  the  battery ; 
and  about  one  o'clock  on  the  18th  we  cast  anchor  at  a  short 
distance  within  the  reefs,  and  about  a  mile  and  a  half  from 
the  village,  grateful  for  that  Divine  protection  through 
which  we  had  reached  in  safety  our  destined  port. 

The  anchorage  at  Tamatave  is  little  more  than  a  road- 
stead, protected  by  reefs,  but  exposed  to  the  winds  from  the 
east  and  the  north.  There  is  considerable  space  within  the 
reefs,  and  the  holding  ground  is  good.  The  village  of  Tam- 
atave seemed  to  be  built  upon  a  point  of  land  stretching  into 
the  sea  toward  the  south,  which  we  afterward  found  to  be 
not  more  than  three  or  four  hundred  yards  wide,  its  surface 
diversified  by  sand-hills  thrown  up  by  the  wind  or  sea  to  the 
height  of  fifteen  or  twenty  feet  above  the  ordinary  level  of 
water.  This  low  shore  appeared  generally  covered  with 
brushwood,  rushes,  or  grass,  and  the  several  species  of  pan- 
danus  near  the  beach  toward  the  north,  with  a  few  tall  cocoa 
palms  growing  to  the  south  of  the  anchorage,  gave  quite  a 
tropical  character  to  its  vegetation,  though  much  less  rich 


88  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  n. 

and  luxuriant  than  the  verdant  and  beautiful  bays  among 
the  South  Sea  Islands.  The  appearance  of  some  of  the  skulls 
of- the  English  and  French  killed  in  the  attack  on  this  place 
in  1845,  and  fixed  on  high  poles  not  far  from  the  place 
where  we  had  anchored,  produced  a  singular  and  not  very- 
pleasant  sensation,  as  for  the  first  time  I  gazed  on  this  re- 
volting spectacle. 

Shortly  after  we  had  anchored  a  large,  clumsy  single  ca- 
noe, destitute  of  outriggers,  and  paddled  by  a  number  of 
men,  came  alongside,  when  a  middle-aged  man,  followed  by 
three  or  four  others,  mounted  the  ship's  side,  and  came  into 
the  cabin.  They  had  neither  shoes  nor  stockings,  but  wore 
white  shirts  under  a  cloth  bound  round  their  loins,  with  a 
large  white  scarf,  the  native  lamba,  hanging  in  ample  and 
graceful  folds  over  their  shoulders,  and  broad-brimmed  hats 
of  neatly-plaited  grass  or  fine  rushes.  As  soon  as  they  had 
entered,  the  chief  of  the  party,  who  we  understood  was  the 
harbor-master  or  captain  of  the  port,  inquired  in  a  very  of- 
ficial manner,  speaking  imperfect  English,  the  name  of  the 
ship,  of  the  captain,  mate,  passengers,  and  crew,  with  the 
object  of  our  visit,  etc.  The  answers  to  all  these  questions 
were  written  down  by  one  of  his  attendants,  and  he  was  ex- 
plicitly informed  that  the  vessel  was  not  sent  on  a  trading 
voyage,  but  simply  to  convey  the  letter  of  the  merchants  of 
Mauritius  to  the  queen,  and  to  wait  her  majesty's  reply. 
He^said,  if  it  was  only  a  letter,  that  had  been  sent  before, 
and  the  queen  had  returned  her  answer  to  the  effect  that  no 
trade  could  be  allowed  until  the  money  required  as  com- 
pensation for  the  insult  and  the  wrong  perpetrated  in  the 
attack  on  the  country  in  1845  had  been  paid.  He  asked  if 
it  was  right  to  go  to  a  country  and  shoot  down  the  people 
because  we  did  not  like  their  laws  ?  He  soon  informed  us, 
also,  that  he  had  been  a  member  of  the  embassy  sent  to  Eu- 
rope in  1837 ;  that  he  had  visited  France  and  England,  and 
knew  that  whoever  went  to  reside  in  either  of  these  coun- 


CHAP.  it.  VISIT  OF  POET  OFFICERS.  39 

tries  must  be  subject  to  the  laws  of  the  country  so  long  as 
they  remained  there ;  that  the  laws  of  their  queen  were  the 
laws  of  Madagascar,  and  if  any  one  wanted  to  live  there 
they  must  be  subject  to  the  queen's  laws ;  if  not,  they  must 
leave  the  country. 

This,  and  much  more  to  the  same  effect,  we  did  not  at 
tempt  to  dispute,  but  asked  a  few  questions  respecting  the 
general  state  of  the  country  and  people.  When  these  of- 
ficials left  us,  we  sent  to  the  governor  the  letter  which  Mr. 
Cameron  and  I  had  written  to  the  queen,  asking  permission 
to  pay  a  visit  of  friendship  to  the  capital :  a  note  at  the 
same  time  was  sent  to  the  governor,  asking  him  to  forward 
our  letters,  and  one  which  Mr.  Cameron  wrote  to  his  friends 
there,  explaining  more  fully  the  object  of  our  visit  to  An- 
tananarivo. A  number  of  letters  were  also  sent  on  shore 
for  the  French  traders  and  some  of  the  natives.  The  cap- 
tain said  he  should  only  deliver  the  letter  from  the  mer- 
chants to  an  officer  sent  especially  by  the  governor  to  re- 
ceive it.  The  harbor-master  said  he  might  as  well  forward 
it  by  them,  as  the  governor  would  send  one  of  the  officers 
then  present  for  it.  But  as  the  captain  said  his  instructions 
were  specific,  to  deliver  it  only  to  an  officer  sent  by  the 
governor  for  that  purpose,  the  party  returned  to  the  shore, 
promising  to  consider  a  request  we  had  made  for  fresh  pro- 
visions during  the  time  we  might  have  to  wait  for  the 
queen's  reply  to  our  letter.  In  about  an  hour,  one  of  the 
younger  officers,  having  been  sent  by  the  governor,  same 
on  board,  and  received  from  the  captain  the  letter  and  me- 
morial of  the  merchants,  for  which  he  wrote  and  signed,  in 
a  good  plain  hand,  a  receipt  in  the  native  language.  Mr. 
Cameron  was  not  recognized  by  any  of  the  natives  who 
came  on  board,  nor  did  the  harbor-master  remember  hav- 
ing seen  me,  though  I  had  been  frequently  with  him  when 
he  was  in  England. 

During  the  rest  of  this  day  crowds  of  people  appeared  at 


40  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  n. 

intervals  on  the  beach,  but  there  was  no  farther  communi- 
cation between  the  shore  and  the  ship ;  and  when  the  still 
calm  evening  came,  and  the  shadows  of  night  were  si- 
lently spreading  over  the  new  and  deeply-interesting  scene, 
I  stood  for  a  long  time  leaning  over  the  side  of  our  little 
vessel,  and  gazing  toward  the  distant  mountains  of  the  in- 
terior, earnestly  desiring  that  "  O'er  those  gloomy  hills  of 
darkness"  a  brighter  light  than  of  rising  sun  or  natural  day 
might  soon  arise.  The  few  flickering  fires  on  the  shore, 
and  the  dull  lights  seen  here  and  there  among  the  native 
dwellings,  while  they  indicated  the  habitations  of  men,  pre- 
sented an  aspect  widely  different  from  the  thickly -peopled 
and  brightly-lighted  shores  of  Port  Louis  or  Table  Bay. 

The  history  of  English  intercourse  with  Madagascar,  the 
intensely-affecting  results  of  the  introduction  of  Christianity 
among  the  people,  the  peculiarity  of  our  own  situation,  the 
multiplied  memorials  of  the  Divine  goodness  which  arose 
on  the  review  of  a  long  and  widely-varied  voyage  now 
mercifully  brought  to  its  close,  the  uncertainty  of  the  fu- 
ture, whether  or  not  we  should  be  permitted  to  land,  the 
light  in  which  our  visit  would  be  regarded  by  the  govern- 
ment, and  the  effect  it  might  have  upon  the  circumstances 
of  those  with  whom  we  most  deeply  sympathized ;  all  these, 
and  other  subjects  of  a  similar  kind,  made  thought  active, 
and  led,  I  trust,  to  renewed  confidence  in  Him  who  sub- 
ordinates all  events  to  his  own  purposes  of  mercy  and 
blessing.  It  was  not  until  a  late  hour  that  I  left  the  deck, 
and,  rocked  in  my  narrow  berth  by  the  billows  that  rolled 
in  from  the  wide  ocean  without,  sought  repose  and  rest 
until  a  new  day  should  bring  fresh  cause  for  gratitude,  and 
perhaps  for  anxiety  as  well. 

About  nine  o'clock  on  the  following  morning  a  white 
flag  was  raised  near  the  custom-house,  inviting,  as  we  were 
given  to  understand,  a  communication  from  the  ship ;  our 
boat  was  lowered,  and  the  captain  and  mate  proceeded  to 


CHAP.  ii.  NATIVE  CUSTOM-HOUSE.  41 

the  shore.  They  returned  about  noon,  informing  Mr.  Cam- 
eron and  myself  that  the  governor  wished  to  see  us.  We 
went  on  shore  soon  afterward,  and,  on  landing,  were  met 
by  the  officers  whom  we  had  seen  on  board  the  previous 
day  and  some  others,  who  cordially  welcomed  us,  shaking 
us  frankly  by  the  hand.  A  large  crowd  gathered  round 
us  as  the  officers  led  the  way  to  the  custom-house,  situated 
under  a  cluster  of  tall  cocoa-nut-trees,  not  far  from  the  land- 
ing-place. This  building  is  a  purely  native  structure,  be- 
tween thirty  and  forty  feet  long,  and  nearly  as  wide.  The 
walls  are  about  twelve  feet  high,  and  composed  of  posts 
fixed  in  the  ground  at  unequal  distances,  the  spaces  between 
being  filled  up  with  the  thick  strong  leaf-stalks  of  the  trav- 
eler's-tree  fixed  upright  between  flat  laths,  each  stalk  being 
about  ten  feet  long.  The  thatch  covering  the  steep  roof 
was  composed  of  the  leaves  of  the  same  tree,  fastened  with 
native  cord,  and  the  rods  fixed  horizontally  on  the  rafters ; 
the  floor  was  of  sea-sand,  partly  covered  with  strongly- 
woven  rush  matting,  and  partly  floored  with  the  bark  or 
hard  outside  of  the  traveler's-tree,  which  appeared  to  have 
been  taken  off  from  the  fibrous  centre  of  the  tree,  and  beat- 
en out  flat,  so  as  to  form  a  sort  of  hard,  flat,  cracked,  yet 
adhering  board,  fifteen  or  eighteen  inches  wide,  and  some- 
times more  than  twenty  feet  in  length.  These  bark-formed 
boards  were  laid  side  by  side  on  the  sand,  and,  though  not 
nailed  to  cross  rafters,  seemed  to  lie  even  and  firm.  Eound 
the  sides  and  matted  end  of  the  house  were  fixed  a  number 
of  benches,  on  which  we  sat  down  and  conversed  freely 
with  those  around  us. 

The  harbor-master,  who  could  speak  a  little  English,  and 
to  whom  I  made  myself  known  as  having  met  him  in  En- 
gland, made  inquiries  about  the  affairs  of  Mauritius  and 
the  Cape,  and  whether  it  was  peace  or  war  in  Europe.  He 
also  asked  about  France  and  England,  and  persons  whom 
he  had  met  there — Lord  Palmerston  among  the  rest.  He 


42  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  n. 

asked  more  than  once  about  the  theatres  in  London,  which 
seemed  to  have  been  objects  of  great  attraction  and  wonder 
to  the  several  members  of  the  embassy  when  there ;  but  I 
found  myself  more  at  home  in  answering  his  questions,  and 
those  of  others  who  spoke  in  French,  respecting  the  mis- 
sionaries who  had  formerly  been  in  Madagascar.  In  the 
mean  time  they  freely  answered  the  questions  asked  by 
Mr.  Cameron  in  the  native  language  respecting  the  officers 
and  others  he  had  formerly  known,  and  the  general  state 
of  affairs  at  the  capital. 

After  remaining  here  some  time,  the  harbor-master  in- 
vited us  to  his  own  dwelling,  a  short  distance  farther  from 
the  shore.  On  arriving,  we  entered  a  large  inclosure  form- 
ed with  sticks  or  small  poles,  about  an  inch  and  a  half  in 
diameter  and  eight  or  nine  feet  high,  fixed  upright  in  the 
ground,  and  fastened  together  with  a  tough  and  fibrous 
species  of  creeper.  Part  of  this  large  inclosure  was  fenced 
off  as  a  cattle-fold ;  other  parts  were  occupied  by  the  dwell- 
ings of  some  of  his  assistants  and  the  huts  of  his  slaves, 
while  the  rest  was  under  cultivation.  In  this  garden  a  few 
plants  of  tobacco,  some  pine-apples,  and  a  large  quantity 
of  sweet  potatoes  were  growing,  and  looked  remarkably 
well.  Besides  some  very  tall  and  graceful  cocoa  palms  and 
one  or  two  species  of  pandanus,  there  were  some  fine  trees 
in  the  inclosure  covered  with  fresh  and  shining  leaves, 
which  added  greatly  to  the  charm  of  the  place,  not  only  by 
their  beautiful  appearance,  but  by  the  depth  and  extent  of 
shade  they  afforded.  One  of  these,  apparently  a  Zizyphus 
jujuba,  bearing  a  small  edible  fruit,  was  remarkably  fine, 
as  was  also  a  species  of  betonica,  and  an  indigenous  citron, 
of  which  there  are  two  kinds  peculiar  to  Madagascar,  with 
rich  glossy  foliage. 

The  house  of  the  harbor-master  was  a  well-constructed 
native  dwelling,  about  forty  feet  long,  and  between  twenty 
and  thirty  feet  high,  with  a  door  in  the  centre  and  a  win- 


CHAP.  ii.      PHOTOGRAPH  OF  A  NATIVE  DWELLING.  43 

dow  on  each  side,  the  whole  front  shaded  by  a  broad  ve- 
randa, and  the  house  thatched  with  the  leaves  of  the  trav- 
eler's-tree.  The  floor  of  the  veranda,  as  well  as  the  house, 
was  formed  of  thick  planks  or  boards  neatly  joined,  and 
raised  a  foot  and  a  half  above  the  ground.  On  a  subse- 
quent occasion,  when  the  chief  was  sitting  under  the  ve- 
randa, and  his  aide-de-camp  waiting  in  attendance  outside, 
I  obtained  a  photograph  of  this,  the  first  native  dwelling 


HARBOR-MASTER'S  HOOBE,  TAMATAVK. 

which  I  had  entered  in  Madagascar.  The  walls  inside 
were  covered  with  rofia  cloth,  and  a  fine  large  mat  was 
spread  on  the  floor.  A  neatly-made  four-post  bedstead, 
covered  with  fine  sleeping-mats,  stood  in  one  corner ;  choice 
cooking  utensils  in  another ;  bags  of  rice  and  stores,  with 


44  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  n. 

materials  for  making  mats,  and  native  and  European  weap- 
ons, occupied  other  parts  of  the  dwelling.  In  the  centre 
was  a  table  of  native  workmanship,  covered  with  a  white 
cloth,  on  which  refreshments  were  placed ;  and  there  were 
a  number  of  chairs  and  native  seats  made  of  matting,  like 
high  square  ottomans,  in  different  parts  of  the  room.  Sev- 
eral women  were  occupied  in  one  part  of  the  room  when 
we  arrived,  but  they  retired  as  soon  as  the  chief  entered. 

When  we  were  seated  the  company  resumed  their  inqui- 
ries respecting  England,  France,  and  America,  stating  that 
they  had  entered  into  commercial  relations  with  traders  from 
the  latter  country,,  one  of  whom  was  there  at  present,  wait- 
ing for  the  arrival  of  his  ship. 

While  we  were  thus  occupied  an  officer  with  several  at- 
tendants entered  the  house.  He  was  a  tall  stout  man,  be- 
tween fifty  and  sixty  years  of  age,  with  features  resembling 
those  of  a  South  Sea  Islander.  On  the  upper  part  of  his 
person  he  wore  a  fine  figured  shirt,  with  upright  vandyck 
collar  and  wristbands  of  the  same  pattern,  and,  loosely 
thrown  over  this,  a  large  and  handsome  silk  scarf  or  lamba. 
The  centre  of  the  lamba  consisted  of  broad  stripes  of  pur- 
ple, scarlet,  pink,  and  yellow,  edged  with  a  border  tastefully 
wrought  in  a  kind  of  open-work  exhibiting  a  curious  pat- 
tern in  yellow  and  scarlet  silk.  He  had  neither  shoes  nor 
stockings,  but  wore  a  blue  cloth  cap,  the  shade  edged  with 
silver,  and  the  crown  surrounded  by  a  broad  band  of  gold- 
lace.  Two  of  his  attendants  carried  swords,  one  like  a 
heavy  cavalry  weapon,  the  other  with  a  straight  and  small- 
er blade.  Our  friend  the  harbor-master  introduced  him  by 
name,  as  Rainibehevitra,  apparently  meaning  Father  of 
Great  Thoughts,  thirteenth  honor,  second  in  command,  and 
chief  judge  of  Tamatave.  He  very  frankly  offered  his 
hand,  and,  when  seated,  said  he  came  from  the  governor  to 
bid_us  welcome  in  his  name  and  to  express  his  regret  that 
he  could  not  see  us  at  present.  After  a  short  general  con- 


CHAP.  ii.  CONFERENCE  WITH  THE  CHIEFS.  45 

versation  respecting  rail-roads,  steam-ships,  the  electric  tele- 
graph, and  other  things  of  which  he  had  heard,  he  dismissed 
his  attendants,  and,  sending  all  out  of  the  house  excepting 
the  chief  officers,  entered,  in  a  low  tone  of  voice  scarcely 
audible,  into  a  very  grave  and  earnest  conversation  with 
Mr.  Cameron.  In  reply  to  his  inquiry  as  to  the  real  object 
of  our  visit,  he  was  informed  that  it  was,  as  we  had  ex- 
pressed in  our  letter  to  the  queen  and  officers,  to  pay  a 
friendly  visit  to  the  queen  and  chiefs,  to  converse  about 
things  for  the  good  of  the  country.  That  if  the  queen  chose 
to  receive  us,  we  should  proceed ;  but,  if  not,  return  in  the 
same  vessel.  In  reference  to  the  attack  on  the  country  in 
1845  he  said,  Why  did  the  Queen  of  England  treat  them 
so,  or  allow  them  to  be  so  treated  ?  and  if  it  was  done  with- 
out her  knowledge,  why  not  make  some  reparation  ?  Mr. 
Cameron  replied  that  the  Queen  of  England  probably  did 
not  know  what  was  done  until  some  time  afterward,  and 
had  expressed  her  desire  to  be  friendly  by  sending,  in  1849, 
a  British  admiral,  Dacres,  with  a  letter  and  presents,  thus 
holding  out  the  hand  of  friendship  by  the  highest  officer 
she  could  employ  in  such  a  service ;  and  that,  as  both  let- 
ters and  presents  had  been  refused,  the  English  were  wait- 
ing till  the  Malagasy  should  intimate  some  willingness  to 
be  friendly.  He  said  they  could  not  accept  the  terms  on 
which  the  friendship  was  at  that  time  offered ;  and  he  then 
asked  what  was  the  object  of  the  merchants  in  sending  the 
memorial  to  the  queen,  who  had  already  stated  the  compen- 
sation she  required  for  the  injury  done.  He  was  told  that  we 
had  no  instructions  from  the  merchants,  but  believed  their 
object  was  to  make  known,  in  the  most  honorable  manner, 
to  the  queen  herself,  their  desires  that  the  trade  might  be  re- 
newed, and  to  be  made  acquainted  exactly  with  the  wishes 
of  her  majesty.  He  said  the  queen  had  refused  to  entertain 
a  proposal  said  to  have  been  recently  made  from  the  island 
of  Bourbon  to  receive  a  certain  sum  of  money  to  open  the 
ports. 


46  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  n. 

The  judge  then  asked  whether  the  English  had  any  in- 
tention of  attacking  Madagascar,  as  they  had  been  informed 
that  a  fleet  was  coming  against  them.  They  were  assured 
that  we  had  never  heard  of  any  such  intention,  and  did  not 
believe  there  existed  any  foundation  whatever  for  the  re- 
port. They  then  inquired  about  the  state  of  feeling  be- 
tween England  and  America,  and  said  they  had  heard  that 
the  latter  were  about  to  invade  the  territories  of  the  English 
in  India,  and,  adverting  again  to  the  friendship  of  the  En- 
glish, they  all  said  it  would  be  good  for  them  and  for  the 
people  at  Mauritius  if  friendly  and  commercial  intercourse 
were  restored. 

After  other  minor  topics  had  been  discussed  the  judge 
rose  to  return ;  and  we  walked  in  the  same  direction  to  the 
house  of  Mr.  Provint,  a  French  merchant  residing  at  Tama- 
tave,  by  whom  we  were  welcomed ;  and  a  short  time  after- 
ward we  took  our  leave.  The  judge  accompanied  us  to  the 
road,  and,  with  much  apparent  good- will,  gave  us  his  part- 
ing salutation,  at  the  same  time  bidding  some  of  the  officers 
attend  us  to  the  beach.  There  was  no  suitable  conveyance 
at  hand  belonging  to  the  ship ;  but  the  officer  in  charge  of 
a  large  government  Canoe  lying  on  the  beach  placed  it  at 
our  disposal,  and  sent  a  strong  crew  to  convey  us  safely  to 
our  vessel,  which  we  reached  soon  after  sunset. 

The  chiefs  appeared  to  have  been  pleased  with  the  oppor- 
tunity of  conversing  freely  with  persons  in  whose  state- 
ments they  felt  they  could  fully  confide,  and  whom  they 
acknowledged  they  regarded  as  their  friends ;  and  we  could 
not  help  desiring  that  this  occasion  might  prove  the  earnest 
of  many  interviews  equally  satisfactory  and  on  more  im- 
portant subjects. 

The  next  morning  fresh  provisions  were  readily  allowed 
for  the  ship,  and  toward  noon  we  went  again  on  shore,  and 
were  met  by  our  friend  the  harbor-master,  whom  we  ac- 
companied to  his  house,  where  we  walked  with  him  over 


CHAP.  ii.           CURIOUS  MODE  OF  TAKING  SNUFF.  47 

his  garden.  He  informed  us  that  our  letters  had  been  sent 
to  the  capital  on  the  preceding  day,  and  that  answers  might 
be  expected  in  fifteen  or  sixteen  days.  He  appeared  anx- 
ious to  know  the  nature  of  the  feelings  entertained  toward 
his  country  by  the  government  and  people  at  Mauritius, 
and  expressed  himself  very  desirous  that  all  impediments 
to  the  reopening  of  the  trade  might  be  removed. 

Leaving  his  garden,  we  walked  through  a  part  of  the  vil- 
lage, and  reached  the  custom-house,  which  seemed  to  be  a 
place  of  general  resort  for  a  number  of  the  residents  and 
strangers.  We  conversed  some  time  with  the  chief  custom- 
house officer,  who  could  make  himself  understood  in  French. 
He  spoke  of  the  native  Christians,  and  said  that  the  punish- 
ments inflicted  the  last  time  they  were  discovered  were  so 
severe,  and  so  many  had  been  put  to  death,  that  but  few 
besides  the  prince  and  some  of  the  queen's  relations  remain- 
ed. He  said  he  greatly  regretted  the  closing  of  the  schools, 
and  often  spoke  with  evident  satisfaction  of  his  own  son 
having  gained  a  prize  or  honor  at  one  of  the  latest  exam- 
inations which  were  held  before  public  teaching  was  discon- 
tinued, adding,  that  all  the  chiefs  earnestly  desired  educa- 
tion for  their  children,  and  that  the  youth  of  the  country 
were  themselves  eager  after  knowledge. 

I  was  much  amused  on  this  occasion,  and  often  afterward, 
with  the  manner  in  which  the  chiefs  and  people  generally 
indulge  their  taste  for  an  article  resembling  snuff,  a  native 
manufacture,  comprising  other  ingredients  besides  the  pul- 
verized leaf  of  tobacco,  such  as  salt,  and  the  ashes  of  a  na- 
tive herb,  which  mixture  is  regularly  sold  in  the  markets. 
The  retinue  of  every  chief  or  officer  of  any  rank  includes  a 
bearer  of  what  we  should  call  his  snuff-box.  Those  officers 
who  attend  on  a  superior,  or  are  unattended  by  their  own 
slaves,  carry  this  article  of  luxury  in  some  part  of  their 
dress,  frequently  suspended  from  the  girdle,  and  concealed 
under  the  folds  of  their  lamba;  and  we  sometimes  met  a 


48  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  n. 

traveler  with  his  snuff-box  suspended  from  his  neck,  who 
seemed  almost  destitute  of  every  thing  else  except  the  most 
scanty  clothing.  On  the  occasion  of  our  first  interview  with 
the  chief  with  whom  we  were  now  conversing,  whenever  he 
required  the  agreeable  stimulus,  which  was  tolerably  fre- 
quent, the  attendant  slave,  who  was  usually  squatted  be- 
hind him,  presented  to  him  a  short  piece  of  bamboo  cane, 
about  nine  inches  or  a  foot  long,  and  less  than  an  inch  in 
diameter,  beautifully  polished,  and  ornamented  with  rings. 
Into  the  end  of  this  cylindrical  case  a  circular  piece  of  cane 
or  wood,  attached  to  a  long  tassel  of  silk  threads,  was  neatly 
fitted.  When  the  slave  had  removed  this  ingeniously-con- 
trived stopper  or  lid,  the  chief  took  the  cylinder,  and,  shak- 
ing a  small  quantity,  about  half  a  tea-spoonful,  into  the  palm 
of  his  hand,  he  then,  by  a  quick  jerk  of  the  hand,  tossed  the 
powder  with  great  dexterity  on  to  his  tongue,  without  touch- 
ing his  lips  with  his  hand  or  its  contents.  I  do  not  remem- 
ber ever  seeing  any  of  the  natives  smoking  tobacco,  but  this 
use  of  it  is  universal ;  and,  though  some  deposit  it  in  a  dif- 
ferent manner  in  the  mouth,  it  was  usually,  as  in  this  in- 
stance, jerked  upon  the  tongue. 

I  now  occupied  myself  in  testing  my  progress  in  the  lan- 
guage by  asking  the  names  of  different  objects,  which  I 
wrote  down  as  the  natives  pronounced  them ;  and  I  was 
much  struck  with  the  perfect  identity  of  the  Malagasy  and 
the  Eastern  Polynesians  in  the  names  of  many  of  the  things 
most  common  to  both.  One  of  these  was  a  cocoa-nut-tree, 
and  to  my  surprise  they  pronounced  the  name  precisely  as 
a  South  Sea  Islander  would  have  done.  The  same  was  the 
case  with  the  pandanus  or  vacoua,  one  of  the  most  common 
trees  on  the  coast  both  of  Madagascar  and  Tahiti ;  also  the 
word  for  flower,  and  the  names  of  several  parts  of  the  hu- 
man body.  The  numerals  were  also,  with  but  slight  varia- 
tion, identically  the  same.  The  discovery  of  this  resem- 
blance between  the  languages  spoken  by  two  communities 


CHAP.  ii.  THE  VILLAGE  OF  TAMATAVE.  49 

so  widely  separated  from  each  other,  besides  seeming  to 
point  out  the  source  whence  Madagascar  had  derived  at 
least  part  of  its  present  population,  promised  me  great  facil- 
ity in  acquiring  their  language.  This  promise,  however, 
was  not  realized,  for  I  found  afterward  that,  though  in  many 
respects  retaining  the  same  simplicity  of  structure  and  ar- 
rangement, it  was  in  some  instances  more  defective,  but  in 
others,  especially  in  the  structure  and  application  of  its 
verbs,  far  more  extensive  and  complex  than  the  Polynesian 
language. 

The  village  of  Tamatave  did  not  equal  my  expectations. 
Almost  the  only  good  houses  are  those  belonging  to  the 
foreign  residents  and  Hova  officers.  The  dwellings  of  the 
people  are  of  an  inferior  kind,  few  of  them  new,  and  many 
much  dilapidated.  We  saw  also  but  few  people,  and,  on 
inquiring  the  cause,  were  told  that,  though  the  population 
was  about  3000,  most  of  the  men  had  been  removed  to  Hi- 
vondro,  a  place  about  nine  miles  distant  to  the  southward, 
where  they  had  been  employed  for  some  time  past  in  erect- 
ing a  fort  or  stockade  as  a  defense  against  the  hostile  visit 
which  they  had  been  told  might  be  expected  from  a  large 
number  of  English  ships  of  war. 

As  regards  the  mischief  produced  by  unfounded  reports, 
the  Malagasy  are  much  to  be  pitied.  Shut  out  from  all  in- 
tercourse with  the  rest  of  the  world,  they  are  extremely  lia- 
ble to  be  imposed  upon  by  such  reports,  and  to  suffer  se- 
verely in  consequence,  as  was  the  case  in  the  present  in- 
stance. So  great  was  their  concern  about  the  arrival  of  a 
hostile  fleet  of  probably  thirty  ships,  that  a  number  of  troops 
had  been  sent  from  the  capital  on  the  occasion,  and  such 
was  the  haste  with  which  they  had  been  sent,  the  fatigue  of 
the  service,  the  want  of  proper  supplies,  and  the  effect  of  the 
climate,  for  it  was  in  the  unhealthy  season,  that  numbers  of 
the  men,  and,  it  was  said,  one  fourth  of  the  officers  had  died. 

The  Betsimasaraka,  or  people  belonging  to  this  part  of  the 

D 


50  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  n. 

country,  a  hardy,  robust,  and  somewhat  athletic  people,  were 
the  only  laborers  we  saw,  and  many  of  them  were  slaves. 
The  Hovas,  their  conquerers  and  masters,  showed  all  the 
activity,  enterprise,  intelligence,  and  acquisitiveness  belong- 
ing to  their  race,  and  every  where  exercised  the  prerogatives 
of  victors ;  but,  excepting  when  employed  in  government 
work,  the  labor  of  the  servile  classes  did  not  seem  to  be  ex- 
cessive or  severe,  and  scarcity  of  food,  we  were  told,  was  not 
often  experienced  in  this  part  of  the  country.  Yet  I  was 
astonished  at  the  small  number  of  children,  for  there  seemed 
to  be  scarcely  any  large  families,  few  with  more  than  two  or 
three  children,  and  many  who  were  childless. 

The  dress  of  the  people,  in  general,  did  not  indicate  a  state 
of  prosperity.  The  cessation  of  commercial  intercourse  with 
Mauritius  and  Bourbon  was  probably  felt  more  severely  by 
the  people  at  Tamatave  than  by  those  of  any  other  part  of 
the  island,  and  may  have  produced  the  paucity  of  articles  of 
European  clothing  in  this,  the  principal  sea-port,  so  apparent 
among  all  classes  at  the  period  of  our  visit.  We  found  the 
people  generally  good-natured,  and  very  anxious  to  hear 
about  the  countries  we  had  come  from,  as  well  as  to  talk 
about  their  own ;  willing,  at  the  same  time,  to  oblige  us  so 
far  as  the  regulations  enforced  by  the  government  in  respect 
to  Europeans  would  allow,  and  apparently  glad  that,  in  ref- 
erence to  our  visit,  the  strict  prohibition  of  communication 
had  been  somewhat  relaxed. 

.  I  had  taken  out  with  me  a  number  of  copies  of  the  Illus- 
trated London  News,  some  exhibiting  our  sovereign,  Queen 
Victoria,  as  appearing  on  public  occasions,  and  those  exhib- 
iting the  funeral  of  the  late  Duke  of  Wellington.  Mr.  Cam- 
eron one  day  took  several  of  these  on  shore,  with  which 
the  people  were  greatly  delighted,  and  some  of  the  highest 
officers  requested  permission  to  keep  them  until  the  follow- 
ing day.  No  picture  among  those  taken  on  shore  seem- 
ed to  attract  greater  notice  than  that  representing  the  late 


CHAP.  ii.  THE  TRADE  OF  THE  ISLAND.  51 

duke  presenting  a  birth-day  present  to  one  of  the  royal 
children. 

The  chief  topic  of  conversation,  however,  with  the  people 
generally  had  reference  to  the  opening  of  the  trade.  They 
said  there  were  large  quantities  of  rice  accumulated  in  the 
neighborhood  of  the  ports,  that  the  country  was  full  of  fat 
cattle,  and  could  supply  any  number  required,  while  poul- 
try of  all  kinds  was  equally  abundant ;  but  that  cloth,  and 
other  articles  of  European  manufacture  were  scarce.  All 
trade  with  the  English  or  French,  other  than  those  resid- 
ing in  the  island,  was  prohibited ;  and  among  the  natives 
themselves  we  were  told  that  a  good  ox  could  be  bought  in 
the  market  for  five  Spanish  dollars ;  that  in  the  interior  of 
the  country  eight  or  ten  turkeys  could  be  purchased  for  one 
dollar,  valued  at  about  4s.  2c?.,  and  a  score  or  a  couple  of 
dozen  fowls  for  the  same  sum.  Native  productions  had 
multiplied  during  the  cessation  of  commerce,  while  the  stop- 
page of  the  supply  of  money  from  Mauritius  and  Bourbon 
had  made  that  article  exceedingly  scarce.  The  trade  with 
America  had  somewhat  increased  since  the  rupture  with  the 
Europeans ;  and  we  met  with  Mr.  Mack,  an  American  con- 
nected with  a  mercantile  house  in  New  York,  who  told  us 
that  he  had  been  some  years  in  the  country,  chiefly  on  the 
western  coast,  and  had  a  contract  with  the  government  to 
take  all  the  gum,  and  beeswax,  and  India-rubber  which 
might  be  collected  for  several  years.  Arms  and  ammuni- 
tion, it  was  stated,  were  the  chief,  though  not  the  only  arti- 
cles which  the  native  government  were  to  receive  in  return. 
It  is  not,  however,  probable  that  the  trade  with  America 
will  increase  to  any  great  extent,  as  the  horned  cattle  and 
rice,  the  two  articles  of  export  which  Madagascar  can  sup- 
ply in  greatest  abundance,  are  not  those  for  which  America 
is  likely  to  furnish  any  demand ;  and  the  present  policy  of 
the  native  government  seems  rather  directed  to  the  subju- 
gation of  the  disaffected  and  independent  tribes  within  the 


52  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  n. 

island  than  to  the  development  of  its  resources  for  external 
commerce;  for,  although  the  capture  of  the  herds  belonging 
to  those  tribes  who  may  be  conquered  or  dispersed  may 
increase  the  number  of  disposable  cattle  possessed  by  the 
Hovas,  it  can  only  be  a  temporary  increase,  to  be  afterward 
followed  by  greater  deficiency. 

But,  besides  those  who  were  eager  for  the  arrival  of  the 
money  and  the  articles  of  foreign  manufacture  which  the 
opening  of  intercourse  with  other  countries  would  bring  to 
Madagascar,  there  were  others  deeply  interested  in  higher 
and  more  important  objects,  eager  after  more  valuable  sup- 
plies, food  for  the  mind  and  the  heart ;  and,  though  we  could 
not  satisfy  their  wants,  our  frequent  intercourse  with  them 
was  intensely  interesting,  and  sometimes  deeply  affecting. 
Much  important  information  was  received  from  them,  and 
our  best  advice  and  kindest  Christian  sympathy  appeared 
to  be  both  welcome  and  cheering.  On  one  occasion,  when 
one  of  the  friendly  natives  whom  we  had  expected  to  see 
entered  the  place  where  we  were  sitting,  after  looking  ear- 
nestly at  each  of  us  for  a  few  moments,  and  almost  mechan- 
ically giving  us  his  hand,  there  came  over  his  whole  coun- 
tenance such  an  expression  as  I  had  never  before  witnessed 
in  any  human  being.  It  was  not  ecstasy,  it  was  not  terror, 
and  yet  an  apparent  blending  of  both,  marked  by  an  inten- 
sity of  feeling  but  rarely  seen.  During  the  whole  interview, 
which  was  long,  there  was  a  strange  uneasiness  mingled 
with  evident  satisfaction,  which  it  would  be  difficult  to  de- 
scribe. It  would  be  unsuitable  to  make  any  mention  of  his 
name  or  rank,  or  of  the  present  circumstances  of  some,  or 
the  tragical  end,  on  account  of  their  faith,  of  others  most 
closely  connected  with  him. 

Many  others  were  often  deeply  affected,  sometimes  even 
to  tears,  when  they  found  us  unable  to  supply  what  they 
had  so  long  and  so  earnestly  desired.  I  met  one  day,  in  the 
house  of  a  hospitable  and  friendly  trader,  a  native  chief, 


CHAP.  u.  ANNOYANCES  ON  BOARD  SHIP.  53 

who,  after  making  inquiries  respecting  several  of  the  mis- 
sionaries who  had  formerly  resided  in  Madagascar,  and  tell- 
ing me  he  had  been  the  scholar  of  one  of  them,  took  my 
hand,  and,  pressing  it  between  both  his  own,  expressed  in 
French  his  pleasure  in  seeing  me,  and  uttered,  in  the  most 
earnest  and  deliberate  manner,  his  fervent  desire  that  the 
blessing  of  God  might  rest  upon  me.  After  he  had  left  us, 
I  asked  my  host  if  he  knew  who  or  what  he  was.  He  said 
he  did  not,  that  he  was  from  the  interior,  and  had  only  re- 
cently come  to  Tamatave. 

When  on  shore,  we  were  welcomed  to  the  hospitality  of 
M.  Provint,  a  French  merchant,  and  also  visited  M.  de 
Lastelle,  who  came  to  Tamatave  for  a  few  days  while  we 
were  there.  The  heavy  rains,  however,  occasionally  detain- 
ed us  on  board  our  vessel  whole  days  together,  and  then 
our  imprisonment  was  irksome  in  the  extreme.  Our  cabin 
was  small,  not  more  than  nine  or  ten  feet  long,  seven  feet 
wide,  exclusive  of  our  berths,  each  about  eighteen  inches 
more,  and  seven  feet  high,  being  half  above  and  half  below 
the  deck.  There  was  neither  sky-light  nor  window,  but 
small  apertures,  with  sliding  covers  on  the  sides,  to  admit 
air.  All  the  light  entered  by  the  door,  so  that  when  it  rain- 
ed, and  the  slides  were  closed,  and  the  door  shut,  we  were 
in  darkness,  and  almost  stifled.  Our  captain  and  mate  were 
inveterate  smokers,  and  the  fumes  of  their  tobacco,  as  they 
lay  in  their  berths  smoking,  sometimes  before  they  rose  in\ 
the  morning  and  after  they  lay  down  at  night,  as  well  as  at 
other  times,  were  to  Mr.  Cameron  and  myself,  who  could 
neither  of  us  smoke,  unpleasant  in  the  extreme.  Our  small 
cabin,  eating-room,  sitting-room,  smoking-room,  drinkihg- 
room  for  all,  was  any  thing  but  clean.  There  was  a  rickety 
table  fixed  in  the  middle,  and  on  this  tobacco  was  cut  up 
for  smoking,  and  the  ashes  of  the  pipe  knocked  out;  the 
wine,  rum,  coffee,  or  soup  spilled  on  it;  the  melted  wax 
also  dropped  upon  it,  in  which  the  candle  was  fixed  up- 


54  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAE.  CHAP.  n. 

right  when  a  candle  was  needed;  while  the  oil  dropping 
from  a  dirty  lamp  suspended  from  the  top  rendered  it  quite 
filthy,  and  it  was  never  washed  except  by  the  rain  beating 
in  at  the  door. 

Our  quarters  had  never  been  very  comfortable,  but  after 
we  had  been  in  harbor  for  some  time  our  captain  went  to  an 
island  near  the  reef  and  brought  away  a  number  of  demi- 
johns of  rum,  which  had  been  buried  in  the  sand  there  some 
tune  before  by  a  smuggling  vessel  from  Mauritius;  and, 
after  this,  sometimes  our  officers  drank  very  freely  and  got 
to  fighting  on  the  deck.  Eaw  rum  was  sometimes  given  to 
the  men  in  a  large  basin,  after  which  the  yelling,  quarreling, 
and  tumult  that  followed  made  us  really  apprehensive  for 
our  safety  in  harbor,  to  say  nothing  of  the  prospect  of  our 
voyage  back  to  Mauritius. 

I  used  to  think  that  a  voyage  in  a  steamer  like  the  In- 
diana would,  from  the  many  comforts  it  afforded,  tend  to 
spoil  a  missionary  going  to  an  uncivilized  country ;  but  a 
voyage  in  such  a  vessel  as  the  Gregorio  would  most  ef- 
fectually counteract  any  such  tendency.  We  certainly  saw 
human  nature  under  a  phase  somewhat  new  to  ourselves, 
and  probably  different  from  most  of  its  ordinary  manifesta- 
tions. Its  development  here  was  sometimes  varied  by  our 
steward,  or  cabin  servant,  who  was  quite  an  original,  a  na- 
tive of  Mauritius,  twenty-five  or  thirty  years  of  age,  healthy, 
strong,  and  good-looking.  He  had  been  servant  to  some 
English  officers,  of  whose  integrity  and  character  he  appear- 
ed to  have  formed  a  high  estimate.  He  professed  to  be  a 
Protestant,  and  was,  in  his  way,  at  times  very  devout,  read- 
ing, and  sometimes  praying  audibly,  or  silently,  in  one  cor- 
ner of  our  little  dirty  cabin,  before  stretching  himself  on  the 
floor  and  folding  his  little  dog  Beauty  in  his  arms  as  a  means 
of  composing  himself  to  sleep.  Hi  a  knowledge  of  languages, 
besides  his  native  Creole,  consisted  in  a  little  English,  which 
he  was  frequently  using,  a  little  Bengalee,  and  a  little  Mala- 


CHAP.  ii.  NEW  PLANTS  AND  FLOWERS.  55 

gasy.  He  was  very  fond  of  having  his  own  way,  and  gen- 
erally obtained  it ;  and  equally  prepossessed  in  favor  of  his 
own  opinion,  which  he  reluctantly  surrendered,  and  never 
without  giving  valid  reasons  why  it  should  have  been  fol- 
lowed. 

Whenever  the  weather  was  favorable,  we  always  spent  as 
much  of  the  day  as  possible  on  shore,  and  always  found 
much  enjoyment  in  noticing  the  rich,  beautiful,  and  some- 
times new  forms  of  vegetation  which  covered  the  land.  I 
met  with  no  bulbs,  but  probably  it  was  their  season  of  rest ; 
several  beautiful  varieties  of  acacia,  especially  the  yellow- 
flowering  Acacia  Indica,  grew  every  where  most  luxuriantly. 
Also  a  dwarf  solanum,  with  bright  blue  and  yellow  flowers, 
prickly  leaves,  and  globular  yellow  berries  about  an  inch  in 
diameter.  I  frequently  met  with  the  lively  little  vinca  or 
Caiharanihus  roseus,  not  with  pale,  lanky-stalked,  and  sickly- 
looking  yellow  leaves,  as  we  sometimes  see  them  in  stoves 
at  home,  but  thick-stalked,  dwarf,  bushy,  dark-leaved  plants, 
every  twig  of  which  was  terminated  with  perfectly  formed 
and  deep  rose-colored  flowers.  I  noticed  also  several  spe- 
cies of  what  appeared  to  me  to  be  Gardenia,  some  in  blos- 
som ;  also  a  beautiful  little  grassy-like  plant  with  pale  blue 
flowers,  greatly  resembling  the  wild  forget-me-not.  There 
were  many  kinds  of  hibiscus,  both  herbaceous  and  woody, 
and  the  ricinus,  or  castor-oil  plant,  both  the  purple  and  green 
variety.  The  neighborhood  of  Tamatave  appeared  rich  in 
indigo  plants,  of  which  there  were  two  or  three  varieties, 
one  with  small  dark-colored  leaves  and  long  spikes  of  red- 
dish pink  flowers. 

Among  the  trees,  I  noticed  the  aleurites,  or  candle-nut, 
with  which  I  had  been  familiar  in  the  South  Sea  Islands, 
and  one  or  two  species  of  Eugenia.  The  soil  on  which  they 
grew  was  little  better  than  pure  sand,  and  the  trees  were 
dwarfish  and  stiff.  But  I  was  most  delighted  with  the  few 
Orchidaceous  plants  which  I  obtained.  Among  these  were 


56  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  n. 

Angrcecum  eburneum  or  A.  superbum,  and  the  rare  and  beau- 
tiful Angrcecum  sesquipedale.  Plants  of  each  of  these  I  suc- 
ceeded in  bringing  safely  to  Mauritius,  and  subsequently  to 
England.  The  two  latter  are,  I  believe,  new  to  this  coun- 
try, and  the  sesquipedale  very  distinct  in  its  habit  of  growth, 
having  its  broad  bluish-green  leaves  of  thin  fine  texture 
inserted  very  closely  together  in  the  stalk,  and  slightly  and 
gracefully  curved  toward  the  tip,  and  its  large  waxy,  creamy- 
yellow  flowers,  four  or  five  on  a  stalk,  bending  in  a  line 
nearly  as  horizontal  as  the  leaves,  and  differing  in  this  re- 
spect equally  from  the  habit  of  the  Angrcecum  caudatum,  and 
Angrcecum  eburneum  or  A.  superbum.  But  the  greatest  pecu- 
liarity of  this  flower  is  its  long  fleshy  spur  or  tail,  one  of 
which  depending  from  a  flower  I  measured,  and  found  to  be 
fourteen  inches  in  length,  thus  nearly  approaching  the  foot 
and  a  half  to  which  it  owes  its  name. 

I  often  saw  the  Angrcecum  sesquipedale  afterward,  but  never 
met  with  it  in  the  higher  and  cooler  regions  of  the  country, 
only  in  the  lower  and  hottest  districts ;  and  there  it  was  by 
no  means  so  abundant  as  the  Angrcecum  superbum,  which  is 
a  splendid  Orchid.  The  Angrcecum  sesquipedale.  does  not 
grow  in  the  moist  and  thickly-wooded  parts  of  the  lower 
districts  of  the  island,  but  generally  on  the  straggling  trees 
along  the  edges  of  the  forest,  or  in  parts  where  the  trees  are 
only  thinly  spread  over  the  country.  It  seemed  to  grow 
most  frequently  on  the  driest  parts  of  the  trunks  and  branches 
of  thinly-leaved  trees,  and  was  but  seldom  seen  near  the 
ground.  The  largest  plants  were  found  about  twelve  or 
twenty  feet  from  the  ground,  and  smaller  ones  higher  up. 
It  appeared  to  grow  most  frequently  where  there  was  plenty 
of  light  and  air.  The  leaves  were  neither  numerous  nor 
large ;  and  in  its  native  state  the  plant  presented  a  starved 
appearance  and  straggling  habit.  In  this  state  the  flowers 
were  abundant,  and  deeper  in  color  than  when  growing  in 
the  shade.  The  roots  are  not  matted  and  succulent  like 


CHAP.  ii.  THE  ANGK^ECUM  SESQUIPEDALE.  57 

those  of  A.  superbum,  but  few  in  number,  separate,  long,  and 
wiry,  frequently  running  down  the  outside  of  the  tree  on 
which  they  grow  twelve  or  eighteen  feet  or  more ;  and  so 
tough  in  themselves,  and  adhering  so  tenaciously  to  the  bark 
of  the  tree,  that  a  considerable  amount  of  force  was  required 
to  break  or  detach  them. 

I  once  found  the  trunk  of  a  tree  lying  quite  rotten  on 
the  ground,  and  Angrcecum  sesquipedale  growing  at  inter- 
vals along  its  entire  length.  The  roots,  which  had  pene- 
trated the  decayed  vegetable  fibre  of  the  tree,  were  com- 
paratively white,  short,  and  fleshy ;  the  leaves  larger,  of  a 
darker  green,  and  more  succulent ;  but  there  were  no  flow- 
ers. The  flowers  last  a  long  time,  and  are  objects  of  great 
beauty.  The  aspect  and  habits  of  the  plants  sent  home 
appear  much  altered  for  the  better.  The  plants  placed  in 
moss  in  pots  are  more  compact  in  habit,  the  leaves  larger 
and  of  a  better  color,  the  flowers  equal  to  any  I  saw  in 
Madagascar,  and,  instead  of  the  long  wiry  roots,  short,  thick, 
plump,  green  roots,  as  large  as  those  of  Aerides  crispum. 

This  rare  and  beautiful  angrsecum  flowered  in  the  early 
part  of  the  past  year ;  and  the  following  account  of  the 
plant,  with  a  figure  and  scientific  description  of  the  flower, 
was  shortly  afterward  published  by  Doctor  Lindley.* 

*  "The  only  original  account  that  we  have  hitherto  had  of  this  extra- 
ordinary plant,  consists  of  a  figure  and  a  few  words  of  description  published, 
in  1822,  by  Du  Petit  Thouars,  in  his  'History  of  the  Plants  found  in  Mada- 
gascar, the  Isle  of  France,  and  Bourbon.'  His  statement  is,  that  it  grows 
in  Madagascar  only,  where  it  flowers  in  the  month  of  August ;  that  its  stem 
is  eighteen  inches  high,  with  close  ribbon-shaped  two-lobed  leaves,  a  foot 
long  by  one  and  a  half  inches  broad ;  and  that  its  flowers  are  very  large 
and  white.  To  this  he  adds  some  technical  matter  unnecessary  to  be  re- 
printed. He  called  it  sesquipedalian,  because  its  flowers  were  a  foot  and  a 
half  long. 

' '  From  the  time  that  the  existence  of  this  noble  plant  was  known,  it  has 
been  the  anxious  wish  of  Europeans  to  procure  it  for  cultivation ;  and  at 
last,  at  the  end  of  thirty-five  years,  the  object  has  been  gained.  The  Rev. 
Mr.  Ellis,  in  his  visit  to  Madagascar,  met  with  it  in  the  forests  of  that  isl- 


",8  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  n. 

But  the  most  rare  and  choice  botanical  acquisition  which 
I  made  during  this  visit  was  the  beautiful  aquatic  plant, 
Ouvirandra  fenestralis,  which  Sir  W.  J.  Hooker  designates 
"one  of  the  most  curious  of  nature's  vegetable  produc- 
tions," and  which  he  has  since  described  as  the  water  yam 
or  lace  leaf.  Dr.  Lindley  had  drawn  my  attention  to  this 
and  other  Madagascar  plants  before  my  departure,  and  had 
shown  me  a  drawing  of  it  in  the  work  of  Du  Petit  Thouars. 
At  Mauritius,  M.  Bojer,  a  distinguished  naturalist,  who  had 
formerly  resided  at  Madagascar,  very  frankly  and  kindly 
informed  me  of  the  localities  in  which  the  plants  I  was 
anxious  to  obtain  were  most  likely  to  be  found.  From  the 
work  of  Du  Petit  Thouars  in  M.  Bojer's  possession,  I  copied 
the  ouvirandra  in  a  size  rather  larger  than  the  engraving, 
and,  by  exhibiting  this  to  the  natives,  at  length  found  one 
man  who  knew  where  it  grew.  His  master,  who  had  shown 

and,  and,  having  succeeded  in  sending  home  three  plants  in  a  living  state. 
one  of  them  flowered  magnificently  at  Hoddesden  during  his  renewed  ab- 
sence from  England ;  when  Mr.  Ellis  favored  us  with  a  flower  for  examin- 
ation, and  an  extremely  clever  sketch  of  the  specimen,  showing  its  manner 
of  growth. 

"  The  plant  forms  a  stem  about  eighteen  inches  high,  covered  with  long 
leathery  leaves  in  two  ranks  like  Vanda  tricolor,  and  its  allies ;  but  they 
have  a  much  more  beautiful  appearance,  owing  to  a  drooping  habit,  and  a 
delicate  bloom  which  clothes  their  surface.  From  the  axils  of  the  upper- 
most of  these  leaves  appear  short  stiff  flower-stalks,  each  bearing  three,  and 
sometimes  five  flowers,  extending  seven  inches  in  breadth  and  the  same  in 
height.  They  are  furnished  with  a  firm,  curved,  tapering,  tail -like  spur, 
about  fourteen  inches  long.  When  first  open,  the  flower  is  slightly  tinged 
with  green ;  except  the  lip,  which  is  always  pure  white ;  after  a  short  time 
the  green  disappears,  and  the  whole  surface  acquires  the  softest  waxy  tex- 
ture, and  perfect  whiteness.  In  this  condition  they  remain,  preserving  all 
their  delicate  beauty  for  more  than  five  weeks.  Even  before  they  expand, 
the  greenish  buds,  which  are  three  inches  long,  have  a  very  noble  appear- 
ance. 

' '  Of  this  superb  plant,  the  largest-flowered  of  all  the  Orchids,  we  under- 
stand that  the  only  specimens  in  the  country  are  in  the  possession  of  Mr. 
Ellis  and  Mr.  Veitch."— Gardener's  Chron.,  April  11,  1857. 


CHAP.  n.  THE  OUVIRANDKA  FENESTRALIS.  59 

me  many  acts  of  kindness,  allowed  him  to  go  and  search 
for  it,  and  after  two  or  three  days  he  told  me  he  had  found 
it  growing  in  a  stream,  but  that  there  were  so  many  croco- 
diles in  the  water  that  he  could  not  get  it.  The  late  rains, 
it  was  said,  had  made  them  more  numerous  at  that  particu- 
lar place.  At  length  he  brought  me  a  fine  lot  of  plants  in 
excellent  condition,  and  I  was  glad  to  reward  him  for  his 
trouble,  and  to  take  them  immediately  under  my  own 
charge. 

The  natives  describe  this  plant  as  growing  in  running 
streams.  The  root  or  rhizome  is  about  the  size  of  a  man's 
thumb  in  thickness,  and  six  or  nine  inches  long,  often  branch- 
ing in  diiferent  directions  like  the  roots  of  the  ginger  or  tur- 
meric, but  in  one  continuous  growth,  not  a  succession  of  dis- 
tinct formations  attached  at  the  termination  of  one  and  the 
commencement  of  another.  The  root  is  composed  of  a  white, 
fleshy  substance,  apparently  without  large  or  tough  fibres, 
and  is  covered  with  a  somewhat  thick  light-brown  skin.  I 
was  informed  that  it  also  grew  in  places  which  were  dry  at 
certain  seasons  of  the  year ;  that  the  leaves  then  died  down, 
but  the  root,  buried  in  the  mud,  retained  its  vitality,  and, 
when  the  water  returned,  fresh  leaves  burst  forth.  The  na- 
tives spoke  of  it  as  tenacious  of  life,  and  said  that  wherever 
the  earth  around  even  the  smallest  portion  of  it  remained 
moist  that  portion  would  put  forth  leaves  when  again  cov- 
ered with  water.  This  plant  is  not  only  extremely  curious, 
but  also  very  valuable  to  the  natives,  who,  at  certain  seasons 
of  the  year,  gather  it  as  an  article  of  food,  the  fleshy  root, 
when  cooked,  yielding  a  farinaceous  substance  resembling 
the  yam.  Hence  its  native  name,  ouvirandrano,  literally, 
yam  of  the  water,  ouvi  in  the  Malagasy  and  Polynesian  lan- 
guages signifying  yam,  and  rano  in  the  former  signifying 
water. 

The  ouvirandra  is  not  only  a  rare  and  curious,  but  a  sin- 
gularly beautiful  plant,  both  in  structure  and  color.  From 


60  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  n. 

the  several  crowns  of  the  branching  root,  growing  often  a 
foot  or  more  deep  in  the  water,  a  number  of  graceful  leaves, 
nine  or  ten  inches  long,  and  two  or  three  inches  wide,  spread 
out  horizontally  just  beneath  the  surface  of  the  water.  The 
flower-stalks  rise  from  the  centre  of  the  leaves,  and  the 
branching  or  forked  flower  is  curious ;  but  the  structure  of 
the  leaf  is  peculiarly  so,  and  seems  like  a  living  fibrous 
skeleton  rather  than  an  entire  leaf.  The  longitudinal  fibres 
extend  in  curved  lines  along  its  entire  length,  and  are  united 
by  thread-like  fibres  or  veins,  crossing  them  at  right  angles 
from  side  to  side,  at  a  short  distance  from  each  other.  The 
whole  leaf  looks  as  if  composed  of  fine  tendrils,  wrought 
after  a  most  regular  pattern,  so  as  to  resemble  a  piece  of 
bright-green  lace  or  open  needle-work.  Each  leaf  rises  from 
the  crown  on  the  root  like  a  short,  delicate-looking,  pale- 
green  or  yellow  fibre,  gradually  unfolding  its  feathery-look- 
ing sides,  and  increasing  its  size  as  it  spreads  beneath  the 
water.  The  leaves  in  their  several  stages  of  growth  pass 
through  almost  every  gradation  of  color,  from  a  pale  yellow 
to  a  dark-olive  green,  becoming  brown  or  even  black  before 
they  finally  decay;  air-bubbles  of  considerable  size  frequent- 
ly appearing  under  the  full-formed  and  healthy  leaves.  It 
is  scarcely  possible  to  imagine  any  object  of  the  kind  more 
attractive  and  beautiful  than  a  full-grown  specimen  of  this 
plant,  with  its  dark-green  leaves  forming  the  limit  of  a  circle 
two  or  three  feet  in  diameter,  and  in  the  transparent  water 
within  that  circle  presenting  leaves  hi  every  stage  of  devel- 
opment, both  as  to  color  and  size.  Nor  is  it  the  least  curi- 
ous to  notice  that  these  slender  and  fragile  structures,  appa- 
rently not  more  substantial  than  the  gossamer,  and  flexible 
as  a  feather,  still  possess  a  tenacity  and  wiriness  which  al- 
low the  delicate  leaf  to  be  raised  by  the  hand  to  the  surface 
of  the  water  without  injury. 

I  succeeded  in  conveying  this  plant  safely  to  Mauritius, 
where  it  was  preserved  for  more  than  a  year,  and  seemed  to 


OtmBANDBA   FBXESTBAL18,  OB   LATTICE-UEAB   PLANT. 


CHAP.  n.  LETTERS  FEOM  THE  CAPITAL.  63 

thrive  best  in  running  water  at  a  temperature  of  about  74°. 
I  was  happy  to  present  specimens  of  it  to  M.  Bojer,  and  to 
Mr.  Duncan,  the  director  of  the  Koyal  Botanical  Gardens  at 
Pamplemouses.  At  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  Mr.  M 'Gibbon 
kindly  took  charge  of  it  during  my  absence  on  a  journey 
of  nearly  five  months  into  the  interior,  and  I  willingly  left 
a  plant  in  the  botanic  gardens  there.  Since  my  return  to 
England,  I  have  had  much  satisfaction  in  presenting  speci- 
mens of  this  rare  plant  to  the  Royal  Gardens  at  Kew,  to  the 
gardens  of  the  Horticultural  Society  at  Chiswick,  and  to 
those  at  Regent's  Park,  and  to  the  Crystal  Palace. 

The  plants  at  these  places,  especially  those  at  Kew,  ap- 
pear to  thrive  remarkably  well,  the  leaves  being  equal  in 
size  and  beauty  to  any  which  I  saw  in  Madagascar.  Among 
a  few  comparatively  small  plants  which  I  grew  in  a  glass 
milk-pan,  with  but  a  small  depth  of  earth,  one  flowered  dur- 
ing the  past  summer.  The  seed  ripened  quickly  and  fell 
upon  the  earth  at  the  bottom  of  the  pan,  where  it  soon  ger- 
minated, and  in  the  same  pan  with  the  parent  plant  seven 
or  eight  young  seedling  plants  are  growing  with  pale  green 
leaves  half  an  inch  long.  The  length  of  the  leaf-stalks 
seems  to  be  regulated  by  the  depth  of  the  water ;  when  this 
is  shallow  these  are  short,  as  seen  in  the  opposite  engrav- 
ing, but  when  the  water  is  deep  the  stalks  are  long,  as  rep- 
resented by  the  single  leaf  on  the  side.  The  leaves  are  al- 
ways just  beneath  the  surface,  but  the  flower-stem  rises 
above  the  water.  Sir  W.  J.  Hooker  published  a  minute 
scientific  description  of  the  ouvirandra,  and  a  figure  of  the 
plant,  in  the  "Botanical  Journal,"  very  soon  after  the  plant 
had  been  brought  to  England. 

Fifteen  days  after  our  letters  had  been  sent  to  the  capital 
of  Madagascar  we  heard  that  answers  had  been  received. 
On  the  following  morning,  having  been  invited  to  receive 
communications  from  the  officers  of  the  government,  the 
captain  of  our  vessel,  Mr.  Cameron,  and  myself,  went  to 


64:  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  n. 

M.  de  Lastelle's,  where  we  met  the  chief  judge,  the  harbor- 
master, the  chief  of  the  customs,  and  other  officers,  and  par- 
took of  a  most  sumptuous  breakfast  provided  by  our  host. 
After  breakfast  the  chief  judge  delivered  to  the  captain  the 
answers  of  the  queen  to  the  memorial  of  the  merchants  at 
Mauritius,  for  which  he  required  a  receipt.  He  also  gave 
us  the  replies  to  our  own  communications.  Having  formal- 
ly delivered  the  letters,  the  judge  and  officers  retired,  and 
shortly  afterward  we  proceeded  to  the  beach,  where  Mr. 
Cameron  read  the  letters  from  the  government  They  were 
courteous  and  kindly  expressed,  but  stated  that  there  was 
much  public  business  of  the  queen's  on  hand  which  re- 
quired considerable  tune  to  finish,  and  recommended  us  to 
return  across  the  water  lest  we  should  be  overtaken  with 
sickness.* 

There  was  in  this  answer  no  direct  refusal  of  permission, 
but  a  declaration  that  the  parties  were  much  occupied  and 
a  recommendation  to  us  to  leave  the  island.  We  could  not 
but  feel  regret  at  being  obliged  to  return  without  visiting 
the  capital  and  remaining  longer  among  the  people ;  but  no 
alternative  was  left,  and,  desiring  to  acquiesce  in  what  ap- 
peared to  be  the  intimation  of  the  Divine  will,  we  prepared 
for  our  departure.  Our  friends  did  not  seem  disappointed, 
but  regarded  the  replies  as  more  friendly  and  even  more 
favorable  to  our  object  than  they  had  expected,  considering 
that  the  edict  forbidding  all  intercourse  with  foreigners  was 
still  in  force,  the  indemnity  or  compensation  required  by 
the  queen  not  having  yet  been  paid.  In  the  opinion  of 
some  of  our  friends,  more  good  might  result  from  our  visit 
to  the  coast  than  if,  at  that  particular  time,  we  had  gone  to 
the  capital. 

Two  days  afterward  M.  de  Lastelle  invited  us  again  to  a 
breakfast  which  was  truly  sumptuous.  We  had  much  con- 

*  The  Malagasy  fever,  so  prevalent,  and  often  fatal,  on  the  coast  at  cer- 
tain seasons  of  the  year. 


CHAP.  ii.  DAGUERREOTYPES  OF  NATIVES.  65 

versation  relative  to  the  fever  and  other  diseases  to  which 
the  natives  are  subject,  and  the  medical  properties  of  many 
of  their  plants.  Mr.  Cameron  and  I  had  shown  the  natives 
some  photographic  pictures  which  we  had  taken,  and  sev- 
eral of  the  officers,  looking  at  some  we  had  with  us  on  that 
occasion,  expressed  a  strong  desire  to  have  their  likenesses 
taken  before  we  left ;  and  as  M.  de  Lastelle  pointed  out  a 
house  in  his  inclosure  in  which  we  could  operate,  we  went 
on  board  for  the  daguerreotype  apparatus,  as  that  process 
could  be  most  readily  employed.  When  we  returned  to 
the  shore  there  was  a  little  difficulty,  but,  this  being  over- 
come, the  apparatus  was  brought  on  shore,  and  the  next 
day  Mr.  Cameron  took  a  number  of  daguerreotype  like- 
nesses, with  which  the  originals  were  much  delighted. 

While  thus  employed,  we  received  a  visit  from  a  native 
of  some  consequence,  who  was  described  to  us  as  being  of 
the  twelfth  honor,  and  one  of  the  most  celebrated  diviners 
or  workers  of  the  sikidy  in  the  island.  He  was  in  height 
about  the  middle  stature,  rather  broad-set  than  corpulent, 
good-looking,  light-tawny  colored,  and  seemingly  about  for- 
ty-five years  of  age.  He  was  dressed  in  a  pink  figured 
shirt,  over  which  he  wore  the  white  lamba.  He  also  had  on 
a  broad-brimmed  hat  of  black  camlet,  with  a  very  wide  band 
of  gold-lace.  His  name  was  Eatranombolo,  or  "  the  silver 
house."  Some  of  the  people  appeared  to  regard  him  with 
a  certain  sort  of  dread,  and  there  was  about  him  an  air  of 
great  reserve  and  importance.  The  son  of  the  late  judge 
of  the  district  was  sitting  for  his  portrait  when  he  arrived. 
He  examined  the  camera,  and  seemed  astonished  at  the  ac- 
curacy with  which  the  figure  was  shown  on  the  ground 
glass.  He  wished  to  have  his  own  portrait  taken  for  him- 
self; but,  as  he  would  not  consent  to  a  second  being  taken 
to  be  retained  by  us,  his  wish  was  not  gratified,  and,  after 
looking  with  much  seeming  mystery  at  the  miniatures  al- 
ready taken,  he  left  the  place. 

E 


06  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  n. 

We  spent  as  much  of  our  time  as  possible  with  our  val- 
ued friends  on  shore,  advising  and  encouraging  them  in  their 
difficult  position.  We  also  left  communications  and  small 
presents  for  our  brethren  at  the  capital,  together  with  a  tri- 
fling amount  of  relief  for  those  who  were  in  distress ;  and, 
finally,  on  the  evening  of  the  8th  of  August,  at  a  late  hour, 
took  leave  of  our  kind  friends  at  the  water's  edge  and  pro- 
ceeded to  our  ship,  grateful  for  the  hospitality  shown  us  by 
the  foreign  traders,  and  for  the  good  feeling  and  general 
kindness  manifested  by  the  chiefs  and  people. 

Early  on  the  following  morning  M.  Duprat,  a  native  of 
Italy,  who  had  been  some  years  on  the  island,  but  had  suf- 
fered much  from  fever,  from  which  he  was  not  yet  recover- 
ed, came  on  board,  and  we  soon  afterward  made  sail  toward 
Mauritius.  Our  voyage,  owing  to  head  winds,  calms,  the 
bad  condition  of  our  rigging,  and  other  causes  not  unattend- 
ed with  danger,  was  unusually  tedious,  and  from  the  incon- 
veniences on  board  and  the  conduct  of  the  officers  it  was 
excessively  painful. 

The  sun's  rays  were  generally  too  strong  to  allow  us  to 
leave  our  little  close  cabin  during  the  daytime,  and  when 
we  did  so,  as  there  was  scarcely  more  than  a  few  feet  of 
clear  space  on  deck,  exercise  was  impossible.  The  only 
season  of  relief  was  the  evening,  and  this  pleasant  time,  un- 
less prevented  by  rain,  I  always  spent  on  deck,  watching 
the  sea  and  the  stars ;  or  musing  on  the  land  I  had  recently 
left,  with  the  deeply -interesting  state  of  the  people  by  which 
it  was  inhabited ;  or  thinking  of  others  more  remote  in  my 
far-distant  and  happy  home ;  and  occasionally  listening  to 
the  mellow  or  falsetto  voices  of  one  or  two  of  the  Malagasy 
sailors,  who  sometimes  beguiled  the  hours  of  the  evening- 
watch  with  their  simple  native  songs. 

Ever  since  we  had  expressed  our  apprehensions  in  conse- 
quence of  the  large  quantity  of  rum  brought  on  board  our 
ship,  our  captain  had  not  only  seemed  less  anxious  to  make 


CHAP.  ii.    BOURBON  AND  MAURITIUS  FROM  THE  SEA.          67 

our  position  comfortable,  but  had  occasionally  given  us  un- 
necessary annoyance.  One  day  the  cabin-boy  told  me  he 
had  been  ordered  to  pour  a  kettle  of  boiling  water  over 
some  choice  plants  which  I  had  brought  from  Madagascar, 
and  was  anxious  to  preserve,  but  that  he  had  not  done  so. 
A  little  attention  which  I  had  shown  the  poor  fellow  in  a 
time  of  sickness  had  probably  made  him  my  friend,  and 
saved  my  plants. 

Eighteen  days  after  leaving  Madagascar  we  saw  the  lofty 
volcanic  land  of  Bourbon.  This  island  is  much  higher  than 
Mauritius,  more  compact  in  form,  and  its  scenery  conse- 
quently less  picturesque  and  beautiful.  We  were  probably 
sixty  miles  distant  when  it  was  first  seen,  and  though  clouds 
rested  on  its  higher  portions,  its  summit  and  the  greater  part 
of  its  outline  were  often  afterward  clearly  visible.  The 
coast  of  this  island  is  much  exposed  in  consequence  of  the 
absence  of  sheltering  reefs  and  deep  bays.  While  sailing 
__  along  in  sight  of  it,  we  were  told  by  some  on  board  with  us 
that  there  were  great  numbers  of  tamarind  and  other  fra- 
grant trees,  and  that  at  certain  seasons  of  the  year  the  odors 
from  the  tamarind  blossom  and  other  flowers  were  wafted 
far  over  the  ocean,  perfuming  the  air,  to  the  great  enjoy- 
ment of  those  sailing  near  its  coast.  We- were,  however, 
beyond  the  reach  of  these  odorous  breezes,  or  the  tamarind 
and  other  fragrant  trees  were  not  in  blossom,  for  none  of 
the  perfume  reached  us,  or  we  might  have  realized  the  truth 
of  Milton's  lines — 

"  As  when  to  them  who  sail 
Beyond  the  Cape  of  Hope,  and  now  are  past 
Mozambic,  off  at  sea  northeast  winds  blow 
Sabean  odors  from  the  spicy  shore 
Of  Araby  the  Blest ;  with  such  delay 
Well  pleased  they  slack  their  course,  and  many  a  league 
Cheer'd  with  the  grateful  smell  old  Ocean  smiles." 

On  Sunday,  the  28th  of  August,  we  obtained  our  first 
sight  of  Mauritius,  but  wind  and  sea  were  against  us,  and 


<;,s  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  n. 

two  nights  afterward  it  blew  a  gale,  which  our  ship,  in  its 
crippled  condition  with  regard  to  rigging,  was  but  ill  able 
tt>  bear.  During  the  day  we  sailed  as  near  the  land  as 
practicable,  and  at  night  stood  out  to  sea.  Nothing  could 
surpass  the  beauty  of  the  scenery  of  Mauritius  as  viewed 
from  the  sea.  The  lofty  mountains  of  varied  form,  conical 
or  peaked  with  broad  shoulders,  on  which  the  clouds  often 
rested,  rising  above  the  wooded  ravine,  with  the  fertile  or 
rocky  hills  and  vales,  and,  nearer  the  sea,  the  neat  white 
villas,  generally  embowered  among  trees,  and  the  wide- 
spreading  cane-fields  in  fresh  and  lively  green,  all  combined 
to  produce  an  amount  of  pleasure  which,  while  we  looked 
upon  them,  almost  made  us  forget  for  a  time  the  discomfort 
of  our  position.  At  length,  after  being  tantalized  till  mid- 
night, on  the  1st  of  September  we  anchored  near  the  bell 
buoy  outside  the  harbor,  and  were  towed  into  the  inner 
harbor  by  a  steam-tug  early  on  the  following  morning.  We 
lost  no  time  in  proceeding  to  the  shore  and  seeking  our 
friends,  grateful  for  the  Divine  protection  and  goodness  we 
had  experienced  amid  the  perils  of  the  deep,  through  which 
we  had  been  so  mercifully  preserved. 


CHAP.  m.  QUEEN  OF  MADAGASCAR  COMPENSATED.  69 


CHAPTER  III. 

Compensation  sent  to  the  Queen  of  Madagascar. — Situatton  of  Port  Louis. 
— Cosmopolitan  Aspect  of  its  Inhabitants. — Designation  of  the  Shops. — 
Number  and  splendid  Appearance  of  the  Trees  and  Flowers  of  Port  Louis. 
— Description  of  the  Bazar.  —  Exhibition  of  the  Society  of  Agriculture 
and  Arts. — Arrival  of  the  Survivors  of  the  Wreck  of  the  Meridian. — Hos- 
pitality and  Munificence  of  the  Inhabitants  of  Mauritius. — Testimonial  to 
Captain  Ludlow. — Religious  Services  for  the  Seamen. — Visit  to  Moka. — 
Residence  of  the  late  Dr.  Thorn. — Ascent  of  the  Pouce  Mountain,  and 
View  from  the  Summit. — Plant-hunting  in  the  Woods. — Return  of  Mr. 
Cameron  from  Madagascar.  —  Terms  on  which  the  Trade  of  foreign 
Countries  with  Madagascar  was  renewed. — Letter  to  Foreigners  from  the 
Queen's  Secretary. 

THE  remembrance  of  the  wearisomeness  and  of  the  accu- 
mulated disagreeables  of  our  voyage  from  Madagascar  was 
soon  obliterated  by  the  cordial  welcome  and  the  frank  and 
cheerful  hospitality  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Kelsey,  into  whose 
pleasant  family  circle  I  was  again  admitted.  The  satisfac- 
tion arising  from  finding  myself  in  such  circumstances  was 
increased  by  the  perusal  of  cheering  tidings  from  home, 
which  had  arrived  during  my  absence.  But  as  it  was  de- 
sirable that  I  should  remain  some  time  in  Mauritius,  I  went 
to  reside  in  the  same  house  with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Le  Brun, 
where  I  found  a  comfortable  home  and  pleasant  Christian 
society  until  I  embarked  again  for  Madagascar. 

The  merchants  of  Mauritius  lost  no  time  in  subscribing 
the  required  sum  of  15,000  dollars,  which  was  the  amount 
demanded  by  the  Queen  of  Madagascar  before  she  would 
grant  permission  for  the  renewal  of  trade. 

Mr.  Cameron  being  still  at  Port  Louis,  and  having,  on  ac- 
count of  his  influence  with  the  Malagasy  and  his  knowledge 


70  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  in. 

of  their  language,  been  invited  by  the  merchants  to  proceed 
with  Mr.  Mangeot,  one  of  thtir  own  number,  to  Tamatave, 
to  pay  this  money,  and  to  arrange  with  the  native  authori- 
ties for  the  renewal  of  the  trade,  sailed  from  Port  Louis  in 
the  Nimble,  on  the  10th  of  October,  and  thus  afforded  an 
opportunity,  of  which  advantage  was  readily  taken,  to  com- 
municate farther  with  our  friends  in  Madagascar. 

The  harbor  of  Port  Louis  is  capacious  and  secure.  The 
town  is  situated  at  the  head  of  the  bay,  and  is  inclosed  on 
the  east,  the  north,  and  the  south  by  mountains  at  no  great 
distance  from  the  shore.  The  highest  of  these  is  the  Pouce, 
a  mass  of  ancient  volcanic  rock,  which  rises  immediately 
behind  the  town  to  an  elevation  of  2800  feet,  and  from  this 
a  range  of  volcanic  mountain  extends  toward  the  sea  in  a 
southwest  direction,  terminating  in  a  high  steep  point,  on 
which  the  signal-station,  announcing  the  approach  of  vessels 
to  the  port,  is  fixed.  A  sort  of  spur  of  the  Pouce  stretches 
in  a  line  toward  the  head  of  the  bay,  and  is  surmounted,  at 
its  western  extremity,  by  the  citadel  which  overlooks  the 
harbor  and  town.  Another  mountain  range,  behind  which 
the  summit  of  the  Peterboth  is  seen,  extends  to  the  north- 
west, and  thus  includes,  as  in  a  semicircle,  Port  Louis  and 
its  picturesque  environs.  The  government-house  is  situ- 
ated at  the  upper  end  of  a  broad  open  space  called  the  Place 
d'Armes,  planted  on  each  side  with  trees,  and  extending 
about  500  yards  from  the  landing-place  toward  the  mount- 
ains. Yiewed  from  the  harbor,  the  warehouses  near  the 
shore  and  the  buildings  in  the  centre  of  the  town  look  state- 
ly and  imposing.  The  camp  or  town  of  coolies,  with  here 
and  there  the  cupola  or  minaret  of  a  mosque,  stretches  to 
the  left,  and  the  camp  or  town  of  Creoles  extends  to  the 
right,  and  exhibits  the  painted  wooden  cottages  of  the  former 
slaves  and  others  in  the  midst  of  small  cultivated  gardens, 
inclosed  with  walls  of  loose  stones,  and  extending  to  some 
distance  upward  from  the  base  of  the  signal  mountain.  The 


CHAP.  ui.  ATTRACTIVE  NOVELTIES  AT  PORT  LOUIS.  71 

aspect  of  these  several  localities  indicates  the  widely-differ- 
ent classes  comprised  in  the  population  of  Port  Louis,  and  at 
the  same  time  imparts  an  agreeable  variety  to  the  prospect. 

But  it  is  chiefly  on  landing  that  a  scene  peculiarly  novel 
and  striking  meets  the  eye  of  a  stranger  from  Europe.  On 
the  custom-house  quay  all  is  activity  and  bustle,  even  in 
the  hottest  part  of  the  day.  Gangs  of  coolies  are  toiling, 
and  sing  in  a  low  monotonous  tone,  as  they  empty  the 
barges  and  lighters  that  lie  along  the  edge  of  the  wharf, 
and  deposit  their  contents  under  large  sheds  on  the  shore. 
Weighers  are  busy  at  the  public  scales ;  clerks,  and  custom- 
house officers,  and  merchants  or  traders  of  India  or  Europe, 
Arabs,  Parsees,  English,  French,  Mauritian,  and  Chinese, 
all  in  their  distinctive  costumes,  may  be  met  with  there, 
some  with  the  high-crowned  hat  and  stiff  angular  dress  of 
the  European,  others  in  the  loose  flowing  white  robe  and 
turban  of  India  or  Arabia — most  of  the  former,  and  some 
of  the  latter,  seeking  protection  from  the  fierce  rays  of  the 
sun  under  large  umbrellas. 

On  the  outside  of  the  custom-house  premises  numbers  of 
muleteers  with  their  carts  may  be  seen,  during  the  greater 
part  of  the  day,  waiting  to  be  hired,  while  others  within 
are  loading  or  removing  the  goods  on  which  the  dues  have 
been  paid.  Most  of  the  laborers  about  the  wharves  and 
warehouses  are  either  coolies  or  Chinamen.  The  latter 
appear  generally  more  robust  and  hardy  than  the  former, 
yet  both  are  employed  in  working  all  day  under  the  scorch- 
ing sun,  without  appearing  to  suffer  inconvenience.  There 
are  upward  of  10,000  Indians  in  Port  Louis,  and  an  equal 
number  of  ex-apprentices.  In  1851  the  whole  population 
of  Port  Louis  was  about  50,000,  but  it  has  probably  much 
increased  since  that  time. 

The  same  activity  characterizes  the  business  parts  of  the 
town  during  the  early  part  of  the  day ;  and  the  inhabitants 
here  also  present  an  equal  diversity  of  costume  and  char- 


72  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  in. 

acter.  Arab,  Parsee,  Bengalee  or  Chinese  merchants,  or 
traders  from  Muscat  or  Bombay,  Tranquebar,  Pondicherry, 
Madras  or  Calcutta,  Singapore  or  Canton;  with  English 
and  French  merchants  and  sailors ;  English  military ;  the 
local  police,  wearing  the  same  uniform  as  that  of  London, 
excepting  that  the  tops  of  their  hats  are  covered  with  white 
canvas  instead  of  glazed  oilskin,  and  the  Indian  police 
with  their  white  robes  and  turbans  and  broad  blue  sashes 
or  belts ;  the  Arabian  or  Indian  hawkers  of  the  produce 
of  their  respective  countries,  and  the  Creoles  of  Africa  or 
Madagascar,  carrying  large  flat  baskets  of  vegetables  or 
fruit  on  their  heads,  and  inviting  custom  for  their  goods  in 
tones  more  attractive  than  the  cries  of  London — all  these, 
and  many  others,  may  be  met  with  in  a  short  walk  through 
some  parts  of  the 'town,  or  found  gathered  round  a  public 
auction,  of  which  there  are  at  times  several  in  a  day ;  and 
the  language  of  all  these  different  nations  may  also  at  times 
be  heard,  though  French  is  perhaps  the  most  common. 

Few  places,  perhaps,  of  equally  limited  extent  present  a 
population  so  perfectly  cosmopolitan  as  that  of  Port  Louis. 
The  streets  of  the  town,  which  are  many  of  them  wide, 
cross  each  other  at  right  angles,  and  are,  in  some  parts, 
cooled  by  water-courses,  and  shaded  by  trees.  The  houses 
of  the  merchants  and  more  respectable  inhabitants  are  good, 
being  generally  spacious  and  substantial  stone  buildings, 
chiefly  after  the  French  style.  The  large,  stone-walled 
warehouses  are  often  delightfully  cool  in  the  middle  of  the 
day.  Many  of  the  inferior  dwellings  are  of  wood,  and  oft- 
en stand  detached,  even  in  the  streets,  which  may  probably 
prevent  fires  from  proving  so  fearfully  destructive  as  might 
otherwise  be  the  case.  The  shops  are  of  almost  every 
imaginable  kind,  from  the  well-furnished  English  store  to 
the  little  box-like  room  in  which  a  Malabar  or  a  Creole 
offers  cigars  or  tobacco  for  sale.  Many  of  the  shops  are 
well  fitted  up  and  furnished,  some  with  considerable  pre- 


CHAP.  in.  DESIGNATION  OF  THE  SHOPS.  73 

tension  and  display,  especially  those  of  the  chemists  and 
druggists,  which,  considering  the  size  of  the  place,  appear 
to  be  very  numerous.  Most  of  the  craftsmen  and  skilled 
workmen  of  the  place  are  Creoles,  or  ex-apprentices,  with 
the  exception  of  the  cabinet-makers,  of  which  a  large 
proportion  are  Chinese,  who  are  industrious  and  frugal, 
though  said  to  be  addicted  to  gaming.  It  was  strange  to  a 
European  to  notice,  in  the  shops  of  the  Indians,  the  shop- 
man or  master  seated  cross-legged  on  the  counter,  with  his 
goods  piled  on  shelves  on  each  side  and  behind  him,  so 
that  he  could  exhibit  his  wares,  serve  his  customers,  and 
keep  his  accounts,  without  rising  from  his  seat.  The  effect 
of  climate,  to  which  it  is  probable  this  habit  is  to  be  as- 
cribed, would  seem  not  confined  to  Asiatics.  I  heard  a 
lady  say  she  was  on  one  occasion  inquiring  for  a  certain 
article,  I  think  worsted  or  Berlin  wool,  when  the  shop-keep- 
er replied  he  believed  he  had  some,  but  it  was  "  up  there," 
pointing  to  a  shelf  near  the  ceiling,  and  that  it  was  too  hot 
for  him  to  get  the  parcel  down  then. 

In  numbers  of  the  small  shops  the  articles  are  both  made 
and  sold  in  the  same  place ;  and  in  some  parts,  especially  in 
the  Malabar  or  Asiatic  quarter,  both  these  proceedings  are 
more  frequently  carried  on  in  the  open  air  than  within 
doors.  Many  of  the  persons  of  color  seem  fond  of  giving 
names  to  their  shops,  and  these  were  at  times  somewhat 
amusing.  I  saw  written  over  a  cigar  and  tobacco  shop 
which  I  frequently  passed,  "  Au  petit  Fashionable ;"  over 
others,  "  Au  petite  Elegance,"  "  Au  petit  Cosmopolite,"  etc. 
A  little  tinsmith's  shop,  scarcely  more  than  a  couple  of 
yards  wide,  and  in  front  almost  all  window  and  door,  had 
written  over  it,  "  Au  petit  Espoir."  Over  a  confectioner's 
shop  was  written,  "  Au  Temple  des  Douces."  Other  names 
were  more  strange  and  unexpected,  as,  "  A  bon  Diable,"  and 
"  A  pauvre  Diable ;"  "  A  la  Sainte  Famille"  over  a  haber- 
dasher's shop,  and  "  A  la  Grace  de  Dieu"  over  a  perfumer's 


74  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAE.  CHAP.  in. 

or  confectioner's.  Malabar  barbers,  whose  stock  of  imple- 
ments seldom  exceeded  scissors,  razor,  and  a  small  looking- 
glass,  might  be  seen  in  all  parts  of  the  town  and  at  all  hours 
of  the  day  in  the  open  air,  by  the  shady  side  of  a  wall,  or, 
if  the  sun  was  vertical,  under  a  piece  of  matting  spread  on 
two  or  three  sticks  fixed  against  a  wall,  shaving  away  at  the 
dry  or  perspiring  heads  or  faces  of  their  customers,  who 
watched  with  interest,  by  means  of  a  small  circular  looking- 
glass,  the  progress  and  execution  of  the  razor. 

Almost  equally  amusing  was  the  strange  misappropriation 
of  names  by  which  the  servants  were  sometimes  designated. 
In  the  families  in  which  I  was  occasionally  domiciled  I  was 
at  first  startled  by  hearing  the  attendants,  chiefly  Creoles  or 
colored  natives  of  Mauritius,  ^called  by  names  equally  sug- 
gestive of  ancient  grandeur  or  poetical  interest.  In  one 
family  Aristides  waited  at  table,  Cecile  was  sewing- woman, 
Virginia  nurse,  and  Amadeo  was  cook's  assistant.  In  an- 
other Urania  was  house-servant,  while  Adonis  and  Polydore 
were  among  those  employed  about  the  premises.  These 
names,  and  others  of  a  similar  kind,  had  probably  been 
given  at  the  time  when  slavery  existed ;  but  they  seemed, 
among  the  younger  Creoles,  to  be  giving  place  to  such  as 
Harry,  Charles,  Louis,  and  other  more  familiar  appella- 
tions. 

So  long  as  I  was  the  guest  of  Mr.  Kelsey  I  passed  through 
the  Malabar  or  Coolie  town  every  time  I  went  in  and  out 
of  Port  Louis,  and  my  attention  was  attracted  by  their  hab- 
it of  squatting  or  sitting  to  every  kind  of  work.  Tailors 
held  the  cloth  they  were  stitching  between  their  toes ;  shoe- 
makers held  the  last  or  leather  in  the  same  manner ;  silver- 
smiths sat  on  the  floor  to  their  work ;  and  smiths  had  their 
forge  and  anvil  on  the  ground.  All  their  work  seemed  to 
be  done  in  this  posture.  I  once  saw  two  men  sitting  down 
while  cutting  a  piece  of  timber  with  a  cross-cut  saw.  Per- 
haps this  habit  might  in  part  account  for  the  long,  thin. 


CHAP.  in.  KAEE  AND  BEAUTIFUL  TREES.  75 

fleshless  legs  and  arms  and  the  flexible  joints  of  the  Coolies, 
so  different  from  the  stiff  muscular  limbs  of  the  Creoles. 

The  habitations  of  the  more  respectable  or  wealthy  classes 
in  Port  Louis,  and  almost  all  except  those  in  the  central  and 
crowded  parts  of  the  town,  are  of  stone,  colored  white  or 
yellow,  and  protected  from  the  sun  by  verandas  or  lattice- 
work. They  stand  within  inclosures,  opening  by  wide  and 
ornamental  gateways  into  the  principal  streets.  These  courts 
are  planted  with  flowers,  and  shaded  by  the  most  rare  and 
beautiful  of  tropical  trees.  Among  these  the  most  umbra- 
geous are  the  bread-fruit,  the  badamia,  and  the  tamarind, 
with  its  lofty  light-green  foliage ;  while  the  most  elegant 
are  the  bamboo,  the  cocoa-nut,  the  date,  and  other  species 
of  palms.  Mingled  with  these  and  other  tall-growing  spe- 
cies are  numbers  of  choice  flowering  shrubs  and  trees,  in- 
cluding ixoras  and  the  hibiscus,  with  blossoms  of  every  hue ; 
the  Poinsettia  pulcherrima,  with  its  large,  rich,  deep  crimson 
bracts,  the  sang-dragon  or  Pterocarpus  draco,  at  times  a  large 
tree,  presenting  one  mass  of  bright  yellow  bloom.  In  other 
parts  are  seen  the  Eugenia  or  jambosa,  with  its  pink  myrtle- 
like  blossom ;  the  Kiglia  pinnala,  chandelier-tree,  with  its 
purple  bell-shaped  flowers,  resembling  those  of  the  Cobcea 
scandens  ;  as  well  as  the  Bauhinia,  and  more  than  one  spe- 
cies of  erythrina.  But  conspicuous  beyond  all  the  rest  is 
the  stately  and  gorgeous  Poinciana  regia,  compact-growing 
and  regular  in  form,  but  retaining  something  of  the  acacia 
habit,  rising  sometimes  to  the  height  of  forty  or  fifty  feet, 
and,  between  the  months  of  December  and  April,  presenting, 
amid  its  delicate  pea-green  pinnated  leaves,  one  vast  pyra- 
mid of  bunches  of  bright  dazzling  scarlet  flowers.  Seen 
sometimes  over  the  tops  of  the  houses,  and  at  others  in  an 
open  space,  standing  forth  in1  truly  regal  splendor,  this  is 
certainly  one  of  the  most  magnificent  of  trees.  Its  common 
name  is  mille  fleurs,  or  flamboyant.  The  Poinciana  and  the 
large  beautifully  yellow-flowering  Colvillea,  as  well  as  some 


76  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  in. 

fine  and  fragrant  species  of  Dombeya,  and  other  kinds,  were 
introduced  from  Madagascar  by  M.  Bojer,  who  also  brought 
the  kiglia  from  the  coast  of  Africa  in  1824. 

Besides  these  and  other  large-growing  trees,  there  are 
numbers  of  gay  shrubs  and  flowers,  either  indigenous,  or 
imported  from  India,  Java,  and  the  adjacent  isles,  from 
South  America,  Africa,  and  Madagascar,  as  well  as  from 
Australia  and  Europe.  The  double  and  single  blossomed 
oleander,  Nereum  splendens,  the  bright  pink-leaved  dracaena, 
are  grown  in  almost  every  garden ;  and  near  one  of  the 
public  roads  I  sometimes  stopped  to  look  at  a  splendid 
Braughmansia,  growing,  not  as  we  see  it  in  England,  in 
spacious  and  tasteful  conservatories,  but  by  the  side  of  a 
ditch  that  drained  part  of  the  town,  with  numbers  of  its 
large  white  trumpet-shaped  flowers  hanging  in  clusters  about 
the  windows  of  a  printing-office,  and  perhaps  cheering,  by 
the  beauty  of  their  form  and  color,  the  labors  of  the  work- 
men within.  The  rich,  delicate,  and  fragrant  Stephanotus 
floribunda,  with  which  the  daughters  of  our  highest  aris- 
tocracy have  garlanded  their  brows  on  the  bridal  morning, 
here  climbs  up  the  lattice-work  of  the  verandas,  and  con- 
tends for  space  with  the  scarlet  passion-flower  or  the  pink, 
waxy,  and  porcelain  or  gem-like  flowers  of  the  Soya  carnosa 
or  the  yellow-flowering  Allamanda  cathartica.  The  beauti- 
ful Dalbergia  scandens  frequently  covered  the  walls ;  and  the 
Crypto,  stygia,  a  purple-flowered  creeper  from  Madagascar, 
occasionally  overspread  the  largest  trees.  The  Lantana 
aurantiaca  in  some  places  forms  hedges;  and  elegantly-grow- 
ing cactuses,  presenting  at  times  long  masses  of  bright  yel- 
low flowers,  are  cut  off  the  tops  and  sides  of  the  walls  with 
a  bill-hook  or  sickle.  To  all  these,  roses  from  England 
haye  been  recently  added,  and  many  of  the  sorts,  especially 
the  Bourbon  and  tea-scented  Chinas,  thrive  remarkably  well, 
though  the  color  of  the  flowers  is  paler,  and  the  fragrance 
fainter  than  when  grown  in  England. 


PALM-TEEE. 


77 


The  inhabitants  of  Mauritius  evidently  possess  a  taste  for 
flowers,  and,  in  addition  to  those  indigenous  to  the  island, 
the  four  quarters  of  the  world  seem,  in  this  respect,  to  have 
contributed  to  their  gratification.  The  greater  part  of  Port 
Louis  is  supplied  with  running  water,  which  must  be  in- 
valuable to  the  gardens.  The  trees  and  flowers  of  the 


AFBIOAN  PALM-TBEE. 


tropics,  as  well  as  those  of  more  temperate  climes,  appear 
to  thrive  well ;  and  while  they  produce  on  the  mind  of  the 
stranger  some  of  the  most  agreeable  impressions,  he  receives 
much  also  in  the  cool  refreshing  shade  of  their  dark  dense 
foliage,  and  the  variety  of  color  and  fragrance  of  the  flow- 


78  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  in. 

ers  prove  a  perpetual  source  of  enjoyment  to  the  inhabit- 
ants, such  as  few  other  places  can  supply. 

I  was  glad  to  be  able  to  add  to  my  portfolio  photographs 
of  a  number  of  these  rich  and  beautiful  plants ;  the  engrav- 
ing on  the  preceding  page  exhibits  a  rare  and  graceful 
plant  of  the  palm  species  from  Africa,  and  growing  most 
luxuriantly  in  the  garden  of  a  French  gentleman  at  Port 
Louis.  The  leaf  resembles  that  of  the  cocoa-nut,  but  the 
stalks  are  united  at  the  crown  of  the  plant,  as  in  the  palm- 
iste  or  areca,  while  the  rings  round  the  enlarged  cylindrical 
stem  resemble  those  of  the  latter.  It  was  growing  in  the 
midst  of  pomegranates  and  other  plants  in  flower,  and  was 
the  only  specimen  of  the  kind  that  I  met  with  in  Mauritius 
or  Madagascar. 

Soon  after  I  had  become  a  resident  at  Port  Louis,  I  ac- 
companied M.  le  Brun  at  an  early  hour  one  morning  to 
the  bazar  or  market,  held  not  far  from  the  landing-place. 
This  market,  which  occupies  two  large  squares,  is  well 
fitted  up,  and  is  covered  in,  with  the  exception  of  a  wide 
thoroughfare  through  the  centre  of  each  square.  In  the 
eastern  bazar  were  arranged,  in  separate  localities,  fancy 
birds  in  cages,  with  poultry,  including  fowls,  ducks,  geese, 
and  turkeys ;  different  kinds  of  vegetables,  many  European 
as  well  as  tropical ;  an  abundant  supply  of  good  potatoes, 
with  cabbages,  beans,  fine  stone  turnips,  onions,  garlic,  to- 
matoes, and  capsicums  or  chilis,  yams,  manioc,  bananas,  ta- 
marinds, custard-apples,  and  pine-apples.  Then  there  were 
cocoa-nuts,  pistache-nuts,  areca-nuts,  betel-leaf,  and  many 
other  vegetable  productions  new  to  me,  all  spread  out  upon 
the  ground,  with  the  kinds  of  fruit  then  in  season.  Besides 
these,  there  were  seeds  and  grain  in  almost  endless  variety, 
lentils,  rice,  barley,  milkt,  maize,  French  beans,  turmeric, 
saffron,  and  numerous  kinds  of  Indian  gram.  The  seed 
trade  appeared  to  be  entirely  in  the  hands  of  the  Coolies  or 
Indians :  each  seller  sat  cross-legged,  frequently  perched  on 


CHAP.  m.  EXHIBITION  OF  TROPICAL  PRODUCTIONS,  ETC.  79 

a  low  stool,  and  surrounded  by  his  measures,  in  the  midst 
of  bags  and  baskets  of  seeds  and  grain,  spread  around  him 
on  the  ground,  to  the  number  of  twenty  or  more  different 
kinds.  In  the  same  part  of  the  market  were  exhibited 
basket-ware,  coopers'  work ;  furniture,  such  as  sofas,  chairs, 
tables,  bedsteads,  and  chests;  besides  stalls  with  cutlery, 
haberdashery,  jewelry,  and  perfumes. 

On  the  opposite  side  of  the  street  was  the  market  for  meat, 
fish,  and  bread,  all  under  shelter,  and  well  arranged.  The 
fish,  including  oysters,  lobsters,  crabs,  and  prawns,  was  tol- 
erably abundant,  but  generally  small ;  the  meat  inferior  and 
dear,  the  best  kinds  of  beef,  though  very  coarse,  being,  in 
consequence  of  the  stoppage  of  the  trade  with  Madagascar, 
upward  of  Is.,  and  sometimes  as  high  as  Is.  6d.  per  pound. 
The  pork  butchers  seemed  to  be  all  Chinese,  and  the  venders 
of  other  kinds  of  meat  were  generally  Creoles.  Masters  of 
respectable  houses  might  occasionally  be  seen  in  the  bazar 
at  an  early  hour ;  but  it  was  chiefly  thronged  with  the  head 
servants  or  cooks  of  the  chief  families  of  the  place,  purchas- 
ing, in  the  cool  of  the  morning,  the  supplies  required  for 
the  day,  as  no  meat  would  keep  till  the  morrow. 

There  are  several  useful  associations  in  Mauritius,  and 
among  them  a  society  for  the  promotion  of  agriculture,  arts, 
and  sciences.  At  the  annual  exhibition  of  this  society, 
which  was  held  in  the  bazar  on  the  22d  of  September,  I 
was  highly  gratified  at  the  splendid  collection  of  tropical 
and  European  fruits  and  other  productions  of  the  island. 
Among  these  were  the  rich,  luscious-looking  mango  of  In- , 
dia,  the  litchi  of  China,  the  custard-apple  of  South  Amer- 
ica ;  while  the  strawberry  and  raspberry  of  Europe  might 
-  be  seen  on  the  same  table.  The  exhibition  comprised  works 
of  manufacture  and  art,  including  painting  and  ladies'  nee- 
dle-work, machinery  and  carriages,  live  stock  and  poultry. 
Among  the  former  were  some  delicate  fabrications  in  cocoa- 
nut  leaf  from  Sechelles ;  of  the  latter,  some  Japanese,  Cochin 


80  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  m. 

China,  and  Mozambique  fowls,  each  distinct  specimen  at- 
tracting my  notice.  But  the  collection  was  richest  in  vege- 
table productions.  Many  of  the  European  vegetables  were 
large  and  well  grown.  Among  these  was  a  fine  single  plant 
of  green  curled  kale,  planted  in  a  tub  painted  green,  as  we 
grow  camellias  or  oranges  in  conservatories.  It  must  have 
had  much  care  bestowed  upon  it,  perhaps  by  some  exile  from 
Caledonia ;  for  not  a  leaf  was  yellow,  but  as  green  and  fresh, 
and  as  crisped  round  the  edges  as  in  any  northern  garden. 
The  yams  were  in  great  variety,  and  very  fine,  as  were  also 
the  samples  of  coffee  and  arrow-root,  but  especially  the  su- 
gars ;  while  the  large  bundles  of  truly  gigantic  cane,  eigh- 
teen or  twenty  feet  high,  were  truly  astonishing.  Sugar  is 
now  the  staple  produce  of  Mauritius,  and  it  is  not  easy  to 
imagine  more  magnificent  samples  of  canes  or  sugars  than 
were  exhibited  on  this  occasion.  The  attention  given  to 
the  cultivation  of  sugar  will  not  appear  surprising  when  it 
is  remembered  that  from  this  little  island  more  than  220 
millions  of  pounds  of  this  article  are  exported  every  year ;  a 
quantity  equal  to  the  cargoes  of  300  ships  of  500  tons'  bur- 
den each. 

Among  the  many  collections  of  flowers  and  groups  of 
plants,  a  towering  pyramid  of  China  asters  was  commenda- 
bly  exhibited  for  the  benefit  of  the  poor,  and  it  afterward 
realized  100  dollars.  One  of  the  most  gorgeous  plants  was 
an  Alpinist  magnified,  from  the  royal  gardens  at  Pample- 
mouses,  on  which  the  bunch  or  cone  of  scarlet  flowers  rose 
on  a  stalk  eight  or  ten  feet  from  the  ground.  There  was  a 
collection  exhibited  by  Mr.  Duncan  of  fifty  sorts  of  roses 
and  some  fragrant  and  beautiful  violets;  but  one  of  the 
groups  most  suggestive  to  me  consisted  of  three  small  plants, 
well  grown,  one  of  them  a  common  English  flower,  exhib- 
ited by  an  amateur  florist,  a  Hindoo  gentleman  from  Cal- 
cutta employed  in  one  of  the  government  omces.  The  card 
on  this  modest  collection  indicated  that  the  judges  had 


CHAP.  in.  ARRIVAL  OF  SHIPWRECKED  PASSENGERS.  81 

awarded  to  its  owner  a  prize,  and  he  perhaps  felt  as  rich 
and  found  as  much  satisfaction  in  the  award  as  an  English 
amateur  would  do  who  had  successfully  exhibited  in  Lon- 
don a  saccolabium  or  a  vanda  from  Nepal  or  Calcutta.  This 
-exhibition  was  quite  a  fete-day  for  the  higher  classes.  A 
band  attended.  The  acting  governor,  General  Sutherland, 
and  his  lady,  together  with  his  suite,  came  during  the  after- 
noon ;  a  number  of  military  and  naval  officers  were  present, 
and  for  some  time  the  several  avenues  around  the  flowers, 
the  most  attractive  objects,  were  literally  thronged  with 
company,  presenting,  in  this  respect,  on  a  smaller  scale,  a 
similar  scene  to  the  gatherings  on  an  English  exhibition- 
day  at  Chiswick  or  the  Regent's  Park. 

The  Sechelles,  from  which  some  of  the  most  beautiful 
fabrications  exhibited  had  been  brought,  comprise  a  num- 
ber of  low  islands  to  the  northward  of  Mauritius,  which 
often  prove  dangerous  to  vessels  navigating  that  part  of  the 
Indian  Ocean.  Two  wrecks  had  recently  occurred  among 
them ;  and  on  the  26th  of  September  the  shipwrecked  crew 
and  passengers  of  an  English  vessel  arrived  at  Port  Louis 
under  circumstances  which  excited  very  deep  and  general 
sympathy.  The  Meridian,  a  fine  new  ship  of  nearly  600 
tons'  burden,  with  a  valuable  cargo  and  eighty-four  passen- 
gers, making,  with  the  crew,  108  souls,  sailed  from  England 
on  the  4th  of  June,  and  on  the  evening  of  the  24th  of  Au- 
gust struck  on  the  rocks  on  the  southwest  point  of  Amster- 
dam, the  smallest  of  two  solitary,  uninhabited,  and  rocky 
islands,  situated  in  the  Southern  Ocean,  midway  between 
the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  and  New  Holland.  On  the  first 
shock -the  captain  had  rushed  on  deck,  and  was  almost  im- 
mediately washed  overboard  and  drowned,  as  were  also  the 
cook  and  one  passenger.  The  force  of  the  sea  was  so  great 
that  soon  after  midnight  the  main-mast  fell  over  the  side 
of  the  vessel,  the  upper  end  reaching  to  the  shore.  About 
the  same  time  the  strongly-built  new  ship  broke  in  two  at 

F 


82  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  in. 

tlie  after  hatchway,  and  by  daylight  a  small  part  of  the 
forecastle,  was  all  that  remained  visible  of  the  fore  part  of 
the  ship.  The  officers  and  crew  and  some  of  the  passen- 
gers had  sought  refuge  in  the  rigging.  The  rest  of  the 
passengers,  including  the  women  and  children,  assisted  and 
encouraged  by  the  second  and  third  officers  and  one  of  the 
seamen,  remained  in  great  peril  from  the  floods  of  water 
that  poured  down  into  their  cabins  and  drove  them  to  the 
poop.  Here  they  continued  in  a  state  of  fearful  uncertain- 
ty until  about  six  o'clock  on  the  following  morning,  when, 
assisted  by  the  two  officers  and  the  sailor  already  mention- 
ed, they  passed  along  by  the  mast,  as  by  a  bridge  or  path- 
way, from  the  wreck  to  the  shore.  Here  they  found  them- 
selves upon  a  mass  of  fragments  of  rugged  volcanic  rock, 
extending  from  forty  to  one  hundred  yards,  and  terminat- 
ing in  a  steep  inaccessible  precipice  of  rock  two  or  three 
hundred  feet  high.  For  the  first  two  nights  and  days  all 
remained  in  this  exposed  situation,  with  only  the  clothes 
they  happened  to  have  on ;  but  a  bale  of  flannel  and  wool- 
en shirts,  being  washed  on  shore,  furnished  them  with  a 
more  ample  supply  of  clothing.  They  also  collected  among 
the  fragments  of  rock  a  small  quantity  of  damaged  provis- 
ions, on  which  they  might  have  barely  subsisted  for  a  few 
days.  For  the  first  two  days  a  biscuit  a  day  was  served 
out  to  each  one,  but  afterward  their  supply  was  limited  to 
half  a  biscuit,  and,  so  fong  as  they  lasted,  a  herring  a  day. 
On  the  third  day  they  removed  to  a  spot  nearly  a  mile  dis- 
tant from  the  place  of  their  wreck,  where,  an  ascent  to  the 
summit  of  the  cliff  being  found,  a  rude  encampment  was 
formed  on  the  heights.  A  pole  was  then  erected,  and  a 
couple  of  red  shirts  and  some  white  flannel  hoisted  as  a  sig- 
nal of  distress.  This,  on  the  following  morning,  was  seen 
by  an  American  whaler  cruising  off  the  island,  but  who 
was  unable  for  some  time,  on  account  of  the  weather,  to 
hold  any  communication  with  the  shipwrecked  party.  At 


CHAP.  in.  GALLANT  CONDUCT  OF  AN  AMERICAN  CAPTAIN.  83 

length,  after  much  suffering,  on  the  oth  of  September,  when 
the  scanty  provisions  would  scarcely  have  sufficed  for  an- 
other day,  and  when  many  had  become  too  weak  to  walk 
to  the  nearest  place  where  water  could  be  found,  a  ship 
previously  seen  reappeared,  and  sent  a  boat  to  the  shore. 
This  vessel  proved  to  be  the  Monmouth,  American  whaler, 
commanded  by  Captain  Ludlow,  who,  with  the  greatest 
promptness  and  kindness,  rescued  the  whole  party  from  a 
most  appalling  death,  and  brought  them  to  Mauritius,  the 
nearest  port,  which  they  reached  in  three  weeks  after  leav- 
ing the  scene  of  their  fearful  disaster. 

The  government  immediately  appropriated  to  the  use  of 
the  shipwrecked  company  the  houses  at  the  quarantine  sta- 
tion, and  took  measures  to  provide  for  their  wants.  The 
inhabitants  of  Port  Louis  manifested  a  prompt  and  generous 
sympathy,  not  less  honorable  to  themselves  than  it  must 
have  proved  cheering  to  the  destitute  strangers.  In  com- 
pany with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Kelsey,  I  visited  them  soon  after 
their  arrival,  and  found  among  those  with  whom  I  con- 
versed a  deep  feeling  of  devout  gratitude  to  God  for  their 
wonderful  and  almost  miraculous  escape  from  death  in  one 
of  its  most  appalling  forms — that  of  starvation.  Besides 
this,  were  feelings  of  inexpressible  thankfulness  to  Captain 
Ludlow,  his  officers  and  crew,  by  whose  humane  and  intrep- 
id exertions  they  had  been  rescued;  while  his  subsequent 
conduct,  his  sympathy  and  ceaseless  attention  to  their  com- 
fort, had  sweetened  the  bitterness  of  their  cup  and  rein- 
spired  them  with  confidence  and  hope.  Supplies  of  clothing 
were  readily  provided  by  the  inhabitants  of  Port  Louis. 
On  the  day  of  their  landing,  and  as  soon  as  their  destitute 
circumstances  were  known,  ladies  in  their  carriages  repaired 
to  the  place  with  packages  of  women's  and  children's  ap- 
parel. Gentlemen  sent  the  contents  of  their  wardrobes,  or 
purchased  and  forwarded  such  articles  as  seemed  most  needed 
and  suitable.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Voller,  a  Baptist  minister,  with 


84:  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  in. 

his  wife  and  family,  were  soon  removed  to  the  hospitable 
home  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Kelsey.  Some  of  their  companions 
were  invited  to  the  habitations  of  other  residents  in  Port 
Louis,  and  the  rest  remained  at  the  quarantine. 

At  a  public  meeting  which  the  passengers  held  a  few 
days  afterward,  to  express  their  sense  of  the  generous  con- 
duct of  the  officers  and  crew  of  the  American  ship,  and  to 
provide  some  suitable  memorial  to  be  presented  to  Captain 
Ludlow,  I  was  surprised  to  meet  a  gentleman  whom  I  had 
known  in  England,  and  whom  I  had  last  met  at  a  bridal 
party  under  very  different  circumstances  from  those  which 
now  brought  us  together.  On  a  subsequent  visit  from  this 
gentleman,  I  learned  that  one  of  the  passengers,  a  young 
man  with  whose  relations  I  was  acquainted  in  England,  had 
been  so  crippled  by  the  wreck  as  to  be  unable  to  move,  and 
had  lain  one  whole  night  upon  the  rocks,  where  the  surf 
washed  over  him.  His  companions  were  too  weak  to  carry 
him ;  the  sailors  of  his  own  ship  had  left  him  to  die ;  but 
Captain  Ludlow  had  sent  four  strong  seamen  to  bring  him 
over  to  the  landing-place,  declaring  he  would  not  leave  the 
coast  while  a  soul  remained  on  the  island.  This  young 
man,  I  was  informed,  was  in  the  hospital.  I  lost  no  time 
in  visiting  him  there,  and  he  was  greatly  delighted  to  meet 
with  some  one  who  knew  his  family  and  friends. 

The  noble  conduct  of  Captain  Ludlow  secured  for  him 
the  esteem  and  gratitude  of  the  entire  community.  The 
governor  acknowledged  his  gallant  and  disinterested  efforts 
on  behalf  of  British  subjects,  and  the  Chamber  of  Commerce 
publicly  did  the  same  in  the  most  handsome  and  appropriate 
manner,  accompanying  the  expression  of  their  admiration 
of  his  generous  and  humane  behavior,  and  that  of  his  officers 
and  crew,  with  the  present  of  a  piece  of  plate,  of  the  value 
of  £120,  to  be  procured  in  London,  as  a  memorial  of  their 
deep  sense  of  his  heroic  conduct  and  distinguished  worth. 

The  inhabitants  of  Mauritius  did  not  limit  their  kind  of- 


CHAP.  ra.     RELIGIOUS  SERVICES  FOR  THE  SEAMEN.  85 

fices  toward  the  shipwrecked  strangers  to  the  supply  of  their 
more  immediate  wants.  A  subscription  was  set  on  foot  by 
the  inhabitants  of  the  island,  and  the  magnificent  sum  of 
£1200  was  raised  and  distributed  among  the  passengers, 
who  were  sent  on  to  Sydney,  their  original  destination,  by 
the  government. 

There  were  many  English  and  American  seamen  visiting 
the  port  at  this  season,  and,  as  there  were  no  religious  ser- 
vices among  them  on  the  Sabbath,  I  made  application  to 
the  harbor-master,  Captain  Eussel,  for  permission  to  have 
public  worship  and  preaching  for  sailors  every  Sunday  in 
the  port-office.  Permission  to  occupy  it  for  this  purpose 
was  very  readily  granted  by  the  governor.  The  requisite 
fittings  were  provided,  and  at  times  a  considerable  number 
of  captains,  officers,  and  seamen,  from  the  vessels  in  the  har- 
bor, attended.  I  continued  these  services  every  Sabbath 
morning  until  the  season  when  unfavorable  weather  is  al- 
ways expected,  and  few  vessels  came  or  remained  in  the 
harbor. 

Toward  the  close  of  the  month  of  October  in  this  year  I 
visited  Moka,  an  inland  district  about  nine  or  ten  miles  from 
Port  Louis.  The  morning  we  set  out  for  this  purpose  was 
fine,  and  we  started  early,  in  order  to  secure  the  pleasant 
coolness  of  that  part  of  the  day.  The  road  was  hilly,  and, 
though  walking  up  the  hills  proved  very  fatiguing,  we  were 
amply  repaid  by  the  beauty  of  the  scenery  and  the  many 
objects  of  novelty  and  interest  which  we  passed.  In  some 
places  stately  groves  or  avenues  of  mango-trees  led  from  the 
road  to  a  large  and  respectable  house ;  at  others,  the  rudely- 
thatched  hut  of  the  Indian  or  of  the  Creole  vender  of  fruit 
or  beverage  stood  under  the  shade  of  a  tamarind-tree  by  the 
side  of  the  dusty  road.  In  some  places  tall  bamboos  grew 
most  luxuriantly  on  both  sides  of  the  road,  and,  uniting 
their  slender,  elastic,  and  gracefully-foliaged  stems  at  the 
top,  formed  a  naturally-pointed  arch  of  peculiar  elegance  and 


86  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  in. 

beauty.  At  other  times  the  sides  of  the  road  were  covered 
for  a  considerable  distance  -with  the  agave,  or  American 
aloe,  of  gigantic  size,  and  in  every  stage  of  progress  toward 
flowering,  in  some  instances  interspersed  with  the  more 
slender  and  graceful  forms  of  the  Fourcrsea  and  other  small- 
er species.  On  our  right  the  sugar  plantations,  covered  with 
tall,  green,  waving  canes,  stretched  away  four  or  five  miles 
toward  the  sea ;  and  on  our  left,  at  the  distance  of  from  300 
yards  to  a  mile,  the  dark-brown  sterile  or  wooded  mount- 
ains towered,  often  in  fantastic  forms,  high  up  into  the 
bright  blue  sky.  5The  object  of  this  visit  was  to  be  present 
at  the  anniversary  of  the  Protestant  chapel  here,  of  which 
the  Kev.  P.  Le  Brun,  son  of  my  worthy  host  at  Port  Louis, 
was  the  minister. 

Soon  after  ten  we  walked  to  the  chapel  of  this  rural  dis- 
trict. It  is  a  neat,  substantial  stone  building,  standing  near 
the  road,  on  land  originally  purchased  by  the  London  Mis- 
sionary Society  for  the  use  of  the  Christian  refugees  from 
Madagascar,  several  of  whom,  including  Eafaravavy,  at  one 
time  resided  here.  The  chapel,  which  will  hold  three  or 
four  hundred  persons,  was  filled  with  colored  people,  re- 
spectably, and,  in  some  instances,  gayly  dressed.  They  lis- 
tened with  attention  to  a  plain,  affectionate,  and  instructive 
sermon  from  M.  Le  Brun,  senior.  There  was  a  large  gath- 
ering of  singers,  and  the  simple  melody  of  one  of  the  Swiss 
tunes  seemed  alike  agreeable  and  appropriate.  The  service 
closed  soon  after  noon,  and  when  we  left  the  building  it 
was  truly  gratifying  to  witness  the  air  of  contentment  and 
kindly  feeling  which  marked  the  cheerful  countenances  and 
cordial  salutations  of  the  crowds  outside,  who  had  met  to- 
gether on  this  occasion  from  the  adjacent  country  and  more 
distant  parts.  It  was  also  particularly  pleasing  to  observe 
the  grateful  esteem  and  satisfaction  with  which  the  kind, 
faithful,  and  venerable  minister  to  whom  they  had  been  lis- 
tening was  welcomed  and  greeted  as  he  made  his  way 


CHAP.  in.          PICTURESQUE  SCENERY  AT  MOKA.  87 

through  the  throng  to  the  residence  of  his  son.  lie  had 
been  their  instructor  and  their  sympathizing  friend  in  their 
dark  days  of  coerced  and  unrequited  toil ;  and  now,  in  their 
happier  state  of  freedom,  he  was  deservedly  recognized  as 
still  their  friend,  not  less  entitled  to  their  confidence  and 
love  in  his  efforts  for  their  emancipation  from  moral  and 
spiritual  bondage  more  oppressive  and  disastrous  than  the 
most  galling  personal  slavery. 

During  the  afternoon  I  strolled  along  the  banks  of  the 
deep  clear  river,  which,  rising  among  the  adjacent  mount- 
ains, flows  through  the  mission-ground.  Here  I  amused 
myself  with  gathering  ferns,  and  admiring  the  picturesque 
and  shady  little  nooks  and  corners  of  rich  and  varied  beau- 
ty which  the  margin  of  the  stream  very  frequently  present- 
ed. Down  to  the  water's  edge  the  ground  was  covered  with 
large  forest-trees  or  thick  underwood,  among  which  passion- 
flower and  other  creepers  appeared  growing  in  great  luxu- 
riance. Some  varieties  of  tree-fern  were  conspicuous  here, 
especially  one  very  beautiful  species,  apparently  the  Cyaihea 
excelsa.  The  bright  pink-leaved  dracasna  appeared  here  and 
there ;  and  *the  green  and  red-leaved  arum  or  caladium,  so 
attractive  among  our  stove-plants  in  England,  was  often 
seen  growing  in  wild  and  luxuriant  beauty  along  the  mar- 
gin of  the  water.  In  this  neighborhood  I  saw  some  gorge- 
ous specimens  of  Hibiscus  mutabiiis,  with  large  hollyhock- 
shaped  flowers,  deep  rose-color  in  the  centre,  and  lighter 
round  the  edges ;  also  a  number  of  plants  of  the  Hedychium 
flavescens,  a  fragrant  yellow-flowering  plant,  resembling  the 
yucca ;  but  as  there  had  evidently  been  a  house  near  the 
place  where  these  were  growing,  they  might  probably  be 
regarded  as  indicating  a  spot,  and  by  no  means  the  only  one 
I  met  with  in  the  island, 

"Where  once  the  garden  smiled, 
And  still  where  many  a  garden  flower  grows  wild." 

In  the  evening  we  returned  to  Port  Louis,  pleased  with 


88  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  in. 

the  events  of  the  day,  and  delighted  with  the  rich  and  glow- 
ing effect  of  the  tropical  landscape  as  it  lay  before  us  bur- 
nished with  the  golden  light  of  the  setting  sun. 

Besides  the  kindness  of  Mr.  Kelsey,  who  lived  about  two 
miles  distant  from  the  town,  I  received  much  attention  from 
Major-general  Sutherland,  commander-in-chief  of  the  forces, 
etc.,  and  from  Dr.  A.  Thorn,  chief  of  the  medical  department. 
With  the  latter  gentleman  and  his  family  I  spent  some 
pleasant  hours ;  and  it  was  always  refreshing  to  walk  up  to 
the  extremity  of  the  Champ  de  Lort,  where,  on  the  edge  of 
the  ravine  leading  to  the  Pouce,  his  house  was  situated.  I 
was  much  struck  the  first  evening,  when  I  walked  up  to  join 
a  dinner-party  at  his  house,  with  the  beautiful  effect  of  the 
large  glass  lamps  suspended  under  the  verandas  or  in  the 
halls  of  the  dwellings  by  the  side  of  the  broad  open  road, 
and  sending  their  rays  through  the  foliage  of  the  gardens 
in  front.  This  effect  was  particularly  striking  when  pass- 
ing through  the  garden  of  my  host,  and  entering  at  once 
from  the  veranda  to  the  lighted  drawing-room,  the  doors 
and  windows  of  which  were  all  open  so  as  to  admit  the  wel- 
come evening  air,  and  to  diffuse  the  light  of  the  room 
among  the  surrounding  shrubs  and  flowers ;  while  the  Im- 
pression was  deepened  on  having  the  folding-doors  leading 
to  the  dining-room  opened  by  two  Bengalees  in  their  white 
turbans  and  long  flowing  white  robes.  There  was  some- 
thing so  Oriental  in  the  whole,  that,  though  commonplace 
enough  to  the  residents  of  India  on  the  island,  it  was  novel 
and  interesting  to  a  stranger.  I  passed  the  night  at  the  res- 
idence of  Dr.  Thorn,  and  slept  in  a  sort  of  summer-house,  or 
small  single-roomed  building  in  the  garden,  called  a  pavil- 
ion, situated  a  few  yards  from  the  dwelling,  and  used  by 
my  host  as  a  museum  and  library.  Detached  buildings  of 
this  kind,  but  of  various  dimensions,  are  built  in  the  gar- 
dens of  most  of  the  houses  of  any  pretension,  and  are  ex- 
ceedingly pleasant  and  convenient,  especially  where  the 
family  is  large. 


CHAP.  m.       RESIDENCE  OF  THE  LATE  DR.  THOM.  89 

When  walking  in  the  .garden  with  Dr.  Thorn  on  the  fol- 
fowing  morning,  I  was  delighted  to  see  the  Achimenes  picta 
and  the  velvet-leaved  Gesneria  growing  luxuriantly,  while 
beautiful  purple  or  claret-colored  ipomaeas  exhibited  all  the 
elegance  of  form  for  which  flowers  of  the  convolvulus  kind 
are  distinguished.  I  observed  also  the  /Stephanotus  flori- 
bunda  and  two  varieties  of  bright  scarlet  quamoclit,  with 
the  Tecoma  jasminiflora,  also  in  flower,  and  trailing  luxu- 
riantly over  the  trellis- work.  Around  the  posts  of  the  ve- 
randa the  perfumed  vanilla,  and  within  the  garden  Poin- 
settias,  dracsenas,  and  roses  were  mingled  with  the  modest- 
looking  Thumbergia,  which  is  quite  a  weed  here,  the  ground 
being  in  some  parts  literally  covered  with  its  different  va- 
rieties. 

The  residence  of  my  friends  was  considered  cool  and 
healthy,  and  the  mountain  scenery  on  one  side,  and  the 
fertile  valley  on  the  other,  covered  with  numerous  palms  and 
tropical  shrubs,  rendered  it  exceedingly  beautiful.  Nothing 
could  exceed  in  luxuriant  growth  the  different  species  of 
the  aloe  tribe,  especially  the  common  American  aloe,  which 
grew  along  the  banks,  by  the  side  of  the  road,  or  on  the 
adjacent  plain.  Many  of  the  old  flower-stalks,  upward  of 
twenty  feet  high,  were  still  standing,  while  younger  stems, 
in  every  stage  of  growth,  from  the  scarcely  apparent  stalk 
to  those  bearing  freshly-opened  flowers,  presented  them- 
selves in  different  directions. 

In  the  pleasant  hours  which  on  different  occasions  it  was 
my  privilege  to  spend  with  Dr.  Thorn  and  his  family,  I  found 
him  always  an  agreeable  and  intelligent  companion,  not 
only  eminent  in  his  profession,  but  having  extended  his  in- 
quiries to  other  departments  of  knowledge.  Meteorotegy 
had  engaged  much  of  his  attention,  and  his  work  on  the 
Law  of  Storms  is  regarded  as  a  valuable  contribution  to  that 
important  branch  of  nautical  science.  Loss  of  health  obliged 
him  during  the  following  year  to  leave  Mauritius  with  his 


90  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  in. 

family  for  England,  where  his  useful  life  terminated  very 
peacefully  soon  after  his  arrival. 

The  9th  of  November,  the  Prince  of  Wales's  birthday, 
was  observed  as  a  public  holiday  in  Port  Louis,  and  I  ac- 
companied my  two  young  friends,  Lieutenant,  now  Captain, 
Gordon  and  Mr.  Larkworthy,  whom  I  often  met  at  Dr. 
Thorn's,  on  an  excursion  to  the  Pouce,  a  lofty  mountain 
with  a  sort  of  thumb-shaped  summit  which  rises  imme- 
diately behind  Port  Louis.  We  set  out  very  early  in  order 
to  secure  the  advantage  of  the  coolness  of  the  morning. 
Some  natives  carried  our  provisions :  I  took  a  large  tin  case 
fbr  specimens  of  plants,  and  my  companions  each  a  portfolio 
for  sketching.  On  leaving  the  town,  we  passed  along  a  path 
that  reminded  me  somewhat  of  excursions  among  the  Pyre- 
nees. After  a  time  we  entered  upon  the  woody  base  of  the 
mountain,  when  the  road  became  more  steep,  but  not  diffi- 
cult, affording  occasionally  good  halting-places,  with  open- 
ings in  the  trees  through  which  we  obtained  most  charming 
views  of  the  rich  valley,  with  its  villas,  cottages,  and  gar- 
dens, the  citadel,  the  town,  the  port,  and  the  batteries  which 
guard  its  entrance,  the  lines  of  stately  shipping  ranged  along 
the  sides  of  the  harbor,  with  the  wide  blue  ocean  stretching 
far  away  beyond ;  on  the  other  side  of  our  path,  the  fine, 
bold,  steep  piles  of  dark  ferruginous  volcanic  rock,  diversi- 
fied along  its  different  strata  by  tufts  of  grass  and  stunted 
shrubs,  rose  several  hundred  feet  above  our  path.  Among 
these  rocks  in  several  places  the  monkeys  which  inhabit  the 
mountain  could  be  seen  springing  from  branch  to  branch 
with  great  agility  and  speed.  The  scene  was  also  enlivened 
by  the  elegant  tropic-bird  occasionally  sailing  along  in  the 
clear  and  cloudless  sky  over  our  heads. 

At  different  parts  of  our  route  we  met  companies  of  the 
inhabitants  of  Moka,  carrying  on  their  heads  loads  of  veg- 
etables, fruit,  and  flowers,  of  which  latter  article  roses  formed 
the  staple,  for  sale  at  Port  Louis.  They  appeared  to  descend 


CHAP.  in.        ASCENT  OF  THE  POUCE  MOUNTAIN.  91 

with  considerable  speed  and  without  much  fatigue,  notwith- 
standing their  heavy  loads.  The  men  who  accompanied  us 
begged  sugar-cane  of  their  friends  in  passing,  and  we  pur- 
chased some  bananas  to  add  to  our  stores.  About  half  past 
seven  we  reached  what  is  called  the  shoulder  of  the  mount- 
ain, where  the  path  we  had  ascended  crosses  the  ridge  and 
descends  to  the  cultivated  plains  on  the  opposite  side.  Find- 
ing here  a  small  stream  of  clear  water,  we  proposed  to  halt 
and  take  our  breakfast.  "We  first  chose  an  open  spot  com- 
manding a  view  of  the  valley  below  and  the  ocean  beyond ; 
but  the  heat  of  the  sun  obliged  us  to  seek  a  situation  where 
the  brush-wood  afforded  some  protection  from  his  rays. 
While  breakfast  was  preparing  and  my  companions  were 
sketching,  I  walked  to  the  other  side  of  the  pass,  and  felt 
amply  rewarded  by  the  extensive  view  I  obtained  of  Moka, 
Plaines  Wilhelms,  and  perhaps  not  less  so  by  the  pleasure 
of  finding  on  the  trunks  of  the  trees  some  orchids,  the  first 
I  had  ever  seen  growing  in  their  natural  state. 

When  our  breakfast  was  ready  we  sat  down  together ;  a 
chapter  of  the  Bible  was  read  in  French  for  the  benefit  of 
our  attendants,  and  then-  we  all  knelt  on  the  grass  on  the 
mountain-side  and  offered  our  thanksgivings  and  prayers 
to  the  Author  of  all  our  mercies.  Soon  after  breakfast  we 
resumed  our  journey  toward  the  summit.  For  some  time 
our  way  lay  through  a  thickly- wooded  part  of  the  mountain, 
and  we  began  with  great  enthusiasm-  to  look  for  new  plants. 
I  found  so  many  things  to  examine  and  compare  that  my 
tin  case  was  soon  filled.  Orchids  were  my  chief  objects  of 
search,  and  though  I  saw  but  a  few  small  ones,  and  only 
one  which  at  first  I  thought  was  a  calanthe,  but  afterward 
found  to  be  a  Bletia,  yet  I  found  myself  am^d  so  many  new 
and  beautiful  plants  of  other  species  that  I  knew  not  which 
way  to  turn ;  I  was  almost  bewildered,  and  my  companions 
seemed  to  find  as  much  enjoyment  as  myself.  My  atten- 
tion was  first  attracted  by  two  new  kinds  of  dracrenas — one 


92  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  ra. 

Draccena  Mauriciensis,  peculiar  to  tlic  island,  and  the  other 
D.  tessellata.  Then  there  were  new  and  elegant  forms  in 
great  perfection.  But  one  of  my  companions  soon  sur- 
passed all  our  discoveries  by  finding  among  the  ferns  and 
near  the  ground,  on  the  stem  of  a  tree  which  was  thicker 
than  my  arm,  six  or  eight  thick,  leathery,  fleshy  flowers, 
and  a  great  many  buds  about  the  size  and  shape  of  a  fig. 
Some  of  the  buds  just  opening  appeared  like  a  wine-glass 
with  a  vandyck  rim,  and  others,  more  open,  appeared  like 
the  most  beautiful  Ancectochilus,  the  flower  five  or  six 
inches  across  and  presenting  a  dark  green  velvety  ground, 
with  pink  and  lilac  spots ;  and  until  I  satisfied  myself  that 
it  was  the  actual  blossom  of  the  tree  itself,  I  thought  it 
was  really  an  Ancectochilus.  We  marked  the  place,  and 
charged  the  natives  to  take  especial  notice,  so  that  we 
might  find  it  again  on  our  descent.  However,  we  soon  saw 
many  others,  and  became  satis^ed  that  we  had  only  met 
with  a  curiosity  without  making  a  discovery.  I  brought 
specimens  of  this  flower  to  M.  Bojer,  who  said  it  was  a 
most  curious  plant,  the  Mithridatea  tamburissa  ;  and  that  af- 
ter the  open  flower  was  fertilized  it  closed  up  again,  the 
seams  all  united,  and  it  swelled  into  a  fruit  as  large  as  a 
small  gourd  or  pumpkin,  filled  with  bright  red  berries  like  a 
pomegranate.  He  said  it  was  vulgarly  called  monkey-apple. 
We  kept  on  our  way,  making  to  ourselves  new  discover- 
ies and  perpetually  startled  by  new  wonders,  until  about 
eleven,  when  we  emerged  from  our  cover  and  attempted 
the  bare  steep  side  of  the  summit.  In  less  than  half  an 
hour  this  was  gained,  and  we  found  ourselves  upon  a  flat- 
tish  space  about  four  feet  wide  and  twelve  or  fourteen  feet 
long.  Here  we  sat  down,  2847  feet  above  the  sea,  the 
whole  island  spread  out  like  a  map  beneath  us,  its  fertile 
central  plains,  and  its  mountains  rising  in  clusters  at  un- 
equal distances  from  the  coast  all  around.  The  broad  blue 
waters  of  the  apparently  boundless  ocean,  seen  through  the 


CHAP.  in.  VIEW  FROM  THE  SUMMIT  OF  THE  POUCE.  93 

openings  between  the  mountains  and  reflecting  the  rays  of 
a  vertical  sun,  presented  one  of  the  most  grand  and  magnifi- 
cent panoramas  it  is  possible  to  imagine.  My  companions, 
however,  were  soon  sufficiently  self-possessed  to  commence 
sketching  some  of  the  adjacent  clusters  of  mountains.  It 
was  enough  for  me  to  recline  on  the  coarse  grass,  and,  rest- 
ing my  elbow  on  a  projecting  piece  of  rock,  to  gaze  in  si- 
lence upon  the  wonderful  and  magnificent  spectacle  before 
me.  By  the  operation  of  what  tremendous  forces  had  these 
vast  masses  of  mountain  and  plain  been  placed  in  the  posi- 
tions they  now  occupied !  how  many  ages  had  been  requi- 
site to  invest  these  mountains  and  plains  with  the  aspect 
they  now  wore !  and  through  how  many  ages  had  they  pre- 
sented the  same  natural  aspects  unseen  by  any  human  eye ! 
for  when  the  island  was  discovered,  only  350  years  ago,  no 
traces  of  its  ever  having  been  inhabited  were  found.  And 
then  how  extreme  had  been  the  vicissitudes  of  human  ex- 
perience within  its  borders !  what  suffering  and  misery  had 
been  endured  amid  all  their  natural  loveliness  during  the 
existence  of  slavery,  with  the  wretchedness  or  wrong  con- 
nected with  which,  legend  or  tradition  associates  some  of 
the  most  striking  natural  objects  in  the  island.  How  strik- 
ing too  the  contrast  betwixt  the  solitude  of  the  past  and  the 
activity,  energy,  and  busy  population  of  the  present !  And 
then,  what  may  be  its  future?  But  my  companions  had 
finished  their  sketches,  and  we  began  to  descend.  On  en- 
tering the  wood  we  collected  specimens  of  plants  and  ferns 
at  the  different  points  we  had  marked  on  our  way  up ;  and 
by  the  time  we  had  reached  the  shoulder  of  the  mountain 
the  men  were  pretty  well  loaded.  Among  the  ferns  were 
beautiful  specimens  of  Asplenium  macrophyllum  and  Adian- 
tum  pattens.  A  few  clouds  had  gathered  round  the  summit 
of  the  mountain,  or  the  heat  would  have  been  severe.  As 
it  was,  we  were  glad  to  seek  the  thickest  shade  for  rest 
while  the  men  prepared  our  dinner. 


94  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  in. 

Having  dispatched  our  repast,  with  a  refreshing  cup  of 
tea,  one  of  my  companions  returned  direct  to  the  town,  and 
the  other  and  myself  penetrated  the  wood  along  the  base 
of  the  mountain  in  search  of  plants.  A  healthy  Angrcecum 
elalum  in  flower,  and  a  fine  specimen  of  the  calanthe-look- 
ing  plant,  were  among  the  first  we  found.  The  bed  of  the 
ravine  was  filled  up  with  masses  of  rock  covered  with 
trees  and  overgrown  with  creepers  and  ferns.  Such  su- 
perb specimens  I  had  never  dreamed  of.  A  frond  of  As- 
plenium  nidus  was  between  five  and  six  feet  long,  and 
eight  inches  across,  covered  on  the  under  side  with  the 
most  beautiful  fructification.  One  head  of  graceful  Loma- 
ria  circinala  I  could  not  help  bringing  away  with  me,  for  it 
was  covered  with  seed ;  as  were  some  other  beautiful  kinds, 
which  I  hope  to  reproduce  from  the  seed  thus  secured. 
We  saw  but  few  flowering  plants  here.  The  fragrant  ery- 
throspermum  and  the  amaranthus-like  Onaphalium  multi- 
caule,  and  others  in  flower,  were  only  seen  on  the  higher 
parts  of  the  mountains.  Orchids,  however,  were  still  the 
chief  objects  of  our  search,  and  we  were  soon  separated  by 
the  masses  of  rock  intervening  between  the  objects  to 
which  we  were  attracted  in  different  directions ;  so  that  we 
hailed  each  other  sometimes  from  a  considerable  distance, 
as,  one  after  another,  some  apparently  new  form  of  orchid 
presented  itself  to  view ;  and  to  be  actually  among  plants 
of  this  rare  and  beautiful  kind,  growing  in  their  natural 
state  amid  all  the  novel  forms  and  rich  and  wild  luxuri- 
ance of  tropical  vegetation,  was  to^me  a  source  of  extreme 
delight;  and  my  companion  seemed  scarcely  less  gratified 
than  myself. 

The  men  who  accompanied  us  had  been  so  loaded  on 
the  higher  parts  of  the  mountain  that  they  declined  follow- 
ing us  into  the  ravine ;  and  we  at  first  satisfied  ourselves 
with  noticing  the  spots  where  we  found  any  thing  attract- 
ive, and  promising  ourselves  a  future  visit;  but,  almost 


CHAP.  in.  RETURN  OF  MR.  CAMERON  FROM  TAMATAVE.      95 

unconsciously,  we  kept  accumulating  choice  bits,  or  bunches 
too  precious  to  be  left,  and  then  tying  them  together  with 
tough  fibrous  creepers,  until  we  had  each  amassed  more 
than  we  could  possibly  carry  through  the  interlaced  thicket 
to  the  road,  which,  after  repeatedly  reducing  our  bundles, 
we  at  length  found,  and  reached  home  late  in  the  evening, 
fatigued,  but  refreshed  and  invigorated  for  accustomed 
duty  by  the  pleasant  day's  excursion,  and  highly  gratified 
with  the  new  wonders  and  beauties  of  the  Creator's  works 
which  we  had  beheld. 

As  the  month  of  November  advanced  the  people  of 
Mauritius  became  anxious  for  tidings  from  Madagascar, 
and  on  the  19th  of  this  month  the  Nimble  arrived  with 
Messrs.  Cameron  and  Mangeot  from  Tamatave,  where  they 
had  accomplished  the  object  of  their  visit,  having  paid  the 
sum  required  by  the  queen  as  compensation  for  the  injury 
inflicted  on  the  country,  and  secured  the  reopening  of  the 
trade  on  the  same  footing  as  that  on  which  it  had  been 
carried  on  before  the  attack  of  the  French  and  English 
vessels.  Traffic  was  now  to  be  free  to  people  of  all  na- 
tions; prices  were  to  be  fixed  between  buyer  and  seller; 
ten  per  cent,  duty  was  to  be  levied  on  all  exports  and  im- 
ports ;  and  n®  natives  of  Madagascar  were  to  be  taken  out 
of  the  country. 

After  communicating  with  the  authorities  at  Tamatave, 
Messrs.  Cameron  and  Mangeot  had  addressed  a  letter  to 
the  secretary  of  the  government  at  the  capital,  and  also  to 
the  Queen  of  Madagascar,  stating  the  object  of  their  visit, 
and  that  they  had  brought  the  sum  of  money  required  as  a 
preliminary  to  the  restoration  of  the  trade.  From  the  sec- 
retary an  official  letter  was  received,  and  on  the  terms 
therein  specified  the  money  was  paid,  and  the  Hasina,  or 
customary  offering  to  the  sovereign,  given  and  received,  in 
token  of  the  amity  existing  between  the  respective  parties. 

The  following  is  the  secretary's  letter : 


96  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  m. 

"  Antannarivo,  23  Asoratany,  1854,  23d  October,  1853. 

"  To  Messrs.  J.  CAMEKON  and  A.  MANGEOT,  and  the  peo- 
ple who  sent  them  with  this  payment  for  the  offense 
committed  by  William  Kelly  and  Remain  Desfosses,  and 
their  companions  in  three  ships. 

"I  have  to  inform  you  that  I  have  told  our  superior 
officers,  and  that  our  superior  officers  have  told  our  queen, 
respecting  the  15,000  dollars  proposed  to  b,e  paid  by  you 
for  (or  on  account  of)  the  offense  of  Remain  Desfosses  and 
William  Kelly,  and  their  companions  in  three  ships,  you 
having  declared  that  this,  payment  gives  you  no  claim 
either  on  the  land  nor  on  the  kingdom. 

"  Now  in  regard  to  the  15,000  dollars,  our  superior  offi- 
cers have  directed  that  the  money  be  received,  so  we  will 
receive  it,  and  the  trade  will  be  opened.  . 

"And  thus  will  the  trade  be  opened.  As  the  custom 
duties  do  not  belong  to  others  (or  to  subjects),  but  to  the 
Queen  of  Madagascar,  so  we  will  take  the  custom  duties 
both  on  imports  and  exports  as  formerly — for  we  change 
not. 

"And  in  regard  to  the  exportation  of  slaves  beyond  the 
sea,  Radama  disliked  that  practice,  and  our  queen  has  made 
no  alteration ;  therefore  we  can  not  export  slaves  beyond 
the  sea. 

"  And  this  also  has  to  be  told  to  you.  A  certain  Euro- 
pean, a  Frenchman,  has  taken  possession  of  a  place  at 
Ibaly,  as  a  port  for  ships,  where  he  is  residing,  and  erecting 
a  house  and  a  magazine.  Our  superior  officers  have  there- 
fore sent  to  drive  him  away  beyond  sea.  We  shall  not  kill 
him,  but  his  property  shall  be  taken  as  our  spoil,  for  he 
has  taken  possession  of  a  port.  But  though  we  have  said 
we  shall  not  kill  him,  yet,  if  he  kills  any  of  the  soldiers, 
the  soldiers  will  kill  him.  And  this  is  told  to  you  lest  you 
should  say,  Wfry,  after  trade  is  opened,  do  you  again  de- 
stroy the  property  of  Europeans  ? 


CHAP.  in.  LETTER  FROM  THE  QUEEN'S  SECRETARY.  97 

"  And  this  also  has  to  be  told  to  you.  If  any  European 
shall  land  at  any  place  within  the  boundary  of  Madagascar, 
where  there  are  not  soldiers  stationed,  and  take  possession 
of  that  place  as  a  port,  such  conduct  will  be  an  offense,  and 
his  property  will  be  taken  as  our  spoil,  and  he  himself  will 
be  driven  away  beyond  the  sea. 

"  And  this  also  has  to  be  told  to  you,  that,  as  each  sover- 
eign has  established  the  law  of  the  land,  whether  it  be  our 
sovereign  or  your  sovereign,  so  in  our  land  the  things  we 
do  not  sell  are  not  to  be  shipped  upon  the  sea ;  and  in  re- 
gard to  the  things  you  do  not  sell,  you,  of  course,  need  not 
bring  them  for  sale. 

"  Farewell ;  health,  etc.,  to  you,  saith 

"  EAINIKIETAKA, 

"  13  Honor,  Officer  of  the  Palace." 

The  event  so  earnestly  desired  by  many  of  the  people  of 
Madagascar  was  announced  by  the  firing  of  cannons  from 
the  fort.  A  public  dinner  was  given  to  Messrs.  Cameron 
and  Mangeot,  and  other  Europeans  in  the  island,  and  gen- 
eral rejoicing  was  manifested  by  the  inhabitants.  The  Nim- 
ble had  brought  back  to  Mauritius  a  cargo  of  ninety-three 
oxen,  in  proof  that  the  trade  was  really  open ;  and  three 
French  vessels  from  Bourbon,  which  had  been  waiting  for 
the  conclusion  of  the  negotiations  between  the  merchants  of 
Mauritius  and  the  native  government,  immediately  took  on 
board  cargoes  of  cattle  for  that  island. 

G 


98  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  iv. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Visit  to  the  Governor  at  Reduit. — Luxuriance  of  Tropical  Vegetation. — 
Plants  and  Flowers  from  Europe  and  Asia. — Arrival  of  a  Missionary  from 
India. — Proposed  Efforts  for  the  religious  Instruction  of  the  Coolies. — 
Efforts  on  behalf  of  the  Creole  Population  of  Grande  Riviere. — Photog- 
raphy in  the  Tropics. — Visit  to  Mr.  Cheron  at  Plaines  Wilhelms. — Fete 
of  the  Children  in  the  School. — Sugar-works  on  the  Estate. — Place  of 
Worship  for  the  Malagasy. — Excursion  to  the  Country. — Spice  Planta- 
tions at  Grande  Donjon. — Preparations  for  the  Feast  of  the  New  Year. — 
Permission  given  to  bury  the  Skulls  of  English  and  Frenchmen  fixed  on 
Poles  at  Tamatave. — Visit  to  Beau  Bassin  and  Wolmar. — Magnificent 
Species  of  Artocarpus.  —  Effects  of  frequent  Hurricanes. — Heat  of  the 
Weather. — Preparation  for  a  Hurricane. — Visit  to  the  Royal  Gardens  at 
Pamplemouses. — Splendid  Avenue  of  Palms. — Missionary  Stations  in  the 
Country.  —  Missionary  Anniversary  at  Port  Louis. — The  Cemetery. — 
Fearful  Ravages  of  the  Cholera  at  Mauritius. — Departure  for  Madagascar. 

THE  Governor  of  Mauritius,  Sir  J.  M.  Higginson,  had, 
since  my  return,  requested  to  be  furnished  with  a  statement 
of  the  more  general  results  of  our  visit,  and  I  went  about 
this  time  to  spend  two  or  three  days  with  him  at  Reduit, 
his  country  residence  on  the  borders  of  Plaines  Wilhelms, 
and  about  seven  miles  from  Port  Louis.  On  arriving  I  re- 
ceived a  very  cordial  welcome,  and  at  dinner  in  the  even- 
ing I  met  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Rawson,  Mr.  Kerr,  and  Mr.  Tupper. 
Mr.  Rawson,  whose  hospitality  I  had  already  experienced  at 
Cernd,  his  charming  residence  on  the  northern  border  of 
Plaines  Wilhelms,  was  the  treasurer  of  the  colony,  and  Mr. 
Kerr  the  auditor-general.  Mr.  Tupper,  an  invalid  clergy- 
man, traveling  for  his  health,  was  brother  to  the  author  of 
"  Proverbial  Philosophy"  and  other  well-known  publica- 
tions. The  evening  passed  very  pleasantly,  conversation 


CHAP.  iv.  THE  DOMAIN  OF  REDUIT.  99 

being  occasionally  enlivened  by  music  and  singing.  The 
temperature  of  the  rooms  was  delightful.  Eeduit  seemed  to 
me  nearly  ten  degrees  cooler  than  Port  Louis.  I  had  much 
conversation  with  the  governor  on  the  state  of  education  in 
the  island,  and  at  a  late  hour  retired  to  rest.  It  was  to  me 
a  novel  spectacle  to  see  large  tiger-skins  hanging  over  the 
banisters  of  the  stairs  leading  to  the  sleeping-rooms,  look- 
ing as  if  but  recently  taken  from  the  bodies  of  their  own- 
ers, and  showing  the  holes  of  the  bullets  by  which  they  had 
been  killed.  The  governor  had  formerly  resided  in  India, 
and  I  supposed  these  were  trophies  of  the  wild  sports  of  the 
East. 

Early  the  next  morning  I  walked  over  the  extensive  do- 
main of  Eeduit,  visiting  portions  which  I  had  been  unable 
to  reach  on  the  previous  evening.  The  house,  which  stands 
upon  a  gradual  slope  extending  from  the  elevated  plain  to 
the  sea,  is  spacious  but  low.  The  centre,  both  of  the  front 
and  the  back  of  the  house,  is  protected  from  the  sun  by 
broad  corridors,  and  the  ends  are  shaded  by  verandas  and 
trellis-work  overgrown  with  passion-flowers  and  other  creep- 
ing plants.  On  the  side  of  the  house  toward  the  sea  was  a 
flower-garden,  and  at  the  northern  end  a  lawn  bordered 
with  shrubs  and  enlivened  by  flower-beds  cut  out  in  the 
turf.  At  Eeduit,  as  well  as  Genie,  I  found  several  familiar 
plants,  and  their  unexpected  appearance  seemed  like  meet- 
ing with  old  friends.  Among  the  roses,  a  small  flowering 
noisette  was  in  full  bloom.  Devoniensis  appeared  with  long 
slender  shoots  and  thin-petaled,  pale  flowers.  Fuchsias,  re- 
cently introduced  from  the  Cape,  oenotheras,  achimenes, 
gloxinias,  and  heliotropes,  mignonnette,  and  violets,  were 
growing  side  by  side  with  Allamanda  Scliottu.  Russelia  jun- 
cia,  Poinsettia,  Gardenia,  and  other  plants  requiring  artificial 
heat  in  England,  all  flourished  luxuriantly  in  the  open  air. 
A  beautiful  aleurites  grew  near  the  end  of  the  house,  and 
beside  it  a  fine,  large  Ablutans  striata,  with  large,  dark- 


100  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  iv. 

orange  flowers,  having  deep,  clear,  claret-colored  penciled 
markings.  Wherever  I  meet  with  home  flowers,  I  always 
expect  to  find  strong  home  feelings,  and  rejoice  in  this 
means  of  perpetually  reviving  them. 

In  an  artificial  stone  basin  were  a  number  of  arums,  re- 
sembling Arum  costatum.  The  fleshy  root  stood  a  foot  or 
more  out  of  the  water,  and  the  large,  strong-ribbed,  shining 
green  leaves  seemed  to  be  eight  or  ten  feet  high.  I  fre- 
quently saw  the  same  species  growing  wild  in  the  swampy 
parts  of  Madagascar.  There  were  also,  near  the  same  place, 
an  India-rubber-tree,  and  some  splendid  Artocarpus  intcyri- 
folia,  or  jack-trees,  with  their  immense  oval  fruit  of  a  green- 
ish yellow  hanging,  not  amid  the  spreading  branches,  but 
on  a  small  short  stem  growing  from  the  trunk  or  from  the 
large  branches  of  the  tree.  In  the  kitchen-garden,  which 
was  extensive,  the  common  China  rose,  or  rose  Edward, 
formed  complete  hedges  along  some  of  the  walks.  Peas, 
French  beans,  and  other  European  vegetables,  were  grow- 
ing well  here,  though  not  so  luxuriantly  as  at  Cerne ;  but 
of  strawberries  there  were  large  beds  apparently  going  out 
of  bearing.  Beyond  this  garden,  at  some  distance  in  the 
same  direction,  were  ponds  supplied  with  water-fowl,  and 
farther  on  the  maize  and  banana  plantations,  with  the  huts 
of  the  Creoles  and  other  laborers. 

Leaving  these,  I  walked  over  the  grounds,  which  were  ex- 
tensive and  varied,  affording  occasionally,  where  the  trees 
and  brushwood  had  been  cleared  away,  on  one  hand,  a  view 
of  the  ocean,  with  the  small  white  sails  of  the  coasting  ves- 
sels glittering  in  the  morning  sun,  on  the  other,  of  the 
mountains  of  Moka,  and  those  extending  from  the  Pouce  to 
within  about  a  mile  from  the  grounds. 

A  deep,  rocky,  and  steep  ravine  bounded  the  domain  on 
the  north,  and  added  greatly  to  the  variety  and  beauty  of 
the  scenery.  At  the  bottom  of  this  ravine  a  rapid  stream 
sparkled  along  its  course  from  the  mountains  of  Moka  to 


CHAP.  iv.  RETURN  TO  PORT  LOUIS.  101 

the  sea.  Notwithstanding  the  stony  nature  of  the  sides  of 
the  ravine,  they  were  covered  with  the  richest  verdure, 
among  which  hung  garlands  of  graceful  creepers,  while 
arums  often  lined  the  borders  of  the  stream,  altogether  af- 
fording most  enticing  bits  of  scenery,  heightened  in  effect 
by  the  mimic  cascades  or  waterfalls  which  foamed  along 
among  the  fragments  of  rock  and  stone.  Near  this  scene 
I  came,  in  the  course  of  my  walk,  upon  a  sort  of  lady's  gar- 
den concealed  by  evergreens  and  flowering  shrubs,  and  con- 
taining a  choice  collection  of  plants,  many  of  them  in  flow- 
er, especially  the  passion-flowers  of  nearly  every  hue,  and 
the  rich  crimson  Poivrea  coccinea,  almost  dazzling  in  the 
bright  rays  of  the  morning  sun. 

In  the  vicinity  of  the  house,  on  both  sides,  were  a  num- 
ber of  remarkable  trees.  A  fine  spreading  banyan,  not  the 
largest  I  had  seen,  but  one  of  the  most  perfect  specimens  of 
a  young  tree,  attracted  my  attention,  as  well  as  a  beautiful 
Indian  acacia  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  house,  while  the 
groups  of  magnificent  sago-trees  were  alike  singular  and 
beautiful. 

On  returning,  I  was  glad  to  unite  in  the  morning  worship 
of  the  family,  which  was  conducted  with  great  propriety  and 
seriousness.  At  the  breakfast,  which  immediately  followed, 
the  large  dish  of  freshly-gathered  strawberries,  with  which 
the  repast  concluded,  reminded  me,  in  a  very  agreeable 
manner,  as  did  many  circumstances  and  scenes  in  Mauritius, 
of  similar  enjoyments  formerly  shared  while  residing  at  the 
foot  of  the  Pyrenees  in  France. 

As  the  governor  went  on  the  same  day  to  Port  Louis  to 
preside  at  the  Legislative  Council,  I  was  glad  to  take  a  seat 
on  the  box  of  his  carriage ;  and  the  day  being  rather  cooler 
than  usual,  there  was  something  quite  inspiriting — reviving 
recollections  of  stage-coach  days  in  England — in  setting  off 
behind  four  well-bred  and  well-appointed  horses,  in  high 
spirits,  and  seeming  as  if  they  liked  to  hear  the  music  of 


102  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  iv. 

their  hoofs  pattering  in  concert  as  they  trotted  along  the 
smooth  macadamized  road. 

A  short  time  previous  to  this  visit,  Mr.  Hardy,  a  Wesleyan 
missionary,  had  arrived  from  Madras  with  his  wife  and  fam- 
ily on  his  way  to  the  Cape  for  the  recovery  of  his  health. 
On  reaching  Mauritius  he  was  too  ill  to  proceed,  and  was 
brought  on  shore  with  but  slight  hopes  of  his  recovery.  I 
visited  him  on  the  day  of  his  arrival,  and  frequently  after- 
ward, and  was  much  pleased  to  observe  his  gradual  recov- 
ery. A  few  days  after  my  return  from  Eeduit  I  attended  a 
conference  of  friends  whom  he  had  invited  to  advise  with 
him  as  to  the  desirableness  of  his  remaining  in  Mauritius, 
and  devoting  his  efforts  to  the  religious  instruction  of  the 
Coolies,  or  Indian  laborers  in  the  island.  Some  of  the 
planters  and  other  Christian  residents  had  often  expressed 
their  deep  regret  on  account  of  the  want  of  every  means  of 
religious  improvement  for  these  laborers,  of  whom  there 
were  90,000  in  Mauritius.  An  attempt  which  had  been 
made  to  teach  some  of  their  children  English,  had  proved 
abortive ;  but  the  want  was  felt  to  be  so  pressing,  the  num- 
ber to  whom  access  could  be  obtained  so  considerable,  and 
>the  hope  so  encouraging  of  securing  native  agents  either  as 
schoolmasters,  Scripture-readers,  or  colporteurs  and  Bible 
distributors,  that  Mr.  Hardy  was  recommended  to  remain  at 
Mauritius  with  his  family,  until  he  could  receive  the  in- 
structions of  his  society  in  England.  Mr.  Hardy  remained 
some  months  in  Port  Louis,  distributing  the  Scriptures,  and 
preaching  in  his  own  hired  house  to  such  as  came  to  hear 
him ;  and,  though  not  without  individual  instances  of  bene- 
ficial results,  yet,  as  he  did  not  receive  instructions  from 
England  to  remain,  he  subsequently  proceeded  to  the  Cape 
of  Good  Hope,  and  finally  to  Australia. 

I  still  continued  to  preach  every  Sunday  to  small  but 
attentive  congregations  of  seamen  and  others  at  the  Port 
Office.  In  the  afternoon  I  attended  the  French  service  at 


CHAP.  iv.    LE  BRUN'S  LABORS  AT  GRANDE  RIVIERE.  103 

M.  Le  Bran's ;  and  as  some  members  of  Mr.  Kelsey's  house- 
hold did  not  understand  French,  we  usually  had  a  short 
English  service  with  the  European  portion  of  the  family, 
Mr.  Kelsey  holding  his  usual  daily  service  with  the  domes- 
tics about  the  premises  in  French. 

Until  within  a  few  months  of  our  arrival,  Mr.  Kelsey 
and  his  family  had  resided  at  Grande  Kiviere,  about  two 
miles  from  Port  Louis,  in  a  southerly  direction.  While 
here  they  had  endeavored  to  be  useful  among  the  Creole 
population  of  the  place,  and  were  greatly  encouraged  by 
the  assistance  of  a  pious  woman  of  color,  a  domestic  in 
their  own  family,  who  first  began  by  instructing  her  fellow- 
servants,  then  extended  her  efforts  to  others,  and  then  en- 
gaged a  room  for  the  purpose  of  religious  worship.  Messrs. 
Le  Brun  visited  the  place  every  Sunday  afternoon,  and 
once  in  the  week  besides.  The  numbers  attending  became 
so  numerous  as  to  render  it  necessary  to  add  another  room 
by  taking  down  a  partition,  and  finally  a  third,  all  of  which 
were  at  this  time  well  filled  with  serious  and  attentive  hear- 
ers. Mr.  and  Mrs.  Kelsey  had  generously  defrayed  the  ex- 
pense of  the  place,  and  rejoiced  in  the  benefit  which  the 
people  of  color  at  Grande  Eiviere  enjoyed  in  the  faithful 
preaching  of  the  Gospel  among  them. 

Early  in  the  month  of  December,  I  accompanied  M.  Le 
Brun,  senior,  to  the  celebration  of  the  anniversary  of  their 
labors  here.  About  seventy  persons  were  present,  who 
listened  with  seriousness  and  apparently  devout  attention 
to  a  plain  and  affectionate  discourse  from  the  venerable 
pastor.  I  was  not  surprised  at  the  satisfaction  his  arrival 
seemed  to  afford,  when  I  remembered  his  labors  for  their 
benefit,  which  had  often  excited  my  sincere  admiration, 
when  I  had  seen  him,  after  preaching  to  a  large  congrega- 
tion in  Port  Louis,  and  allowing  only  a  very  short  interval 
for  rest,  set  off  for  a  walk  of  two  miles  in  the  middle  of  the 
day,  the  thermometer  standing  perhaps  at  84°  or  86°,  for 


104  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  ir. 

the  purpose  of  preaching  the  Gospel  to  a  few  poor  laborers 
and  other  people  of  color  gathered  together  in  a  hired  room. 
The  recollection  of  this  explained  to  me  the  cordial  greet- 
ing which  he  and  his  son  received  after  the  interesting 
services  were  over. 

Grande  Riviere  is  an  important  suburb  of  Port  Louis, 
the  residence  of  several  merchants  and  others  whose  places 
of  business  are  in  the  port.  A  number  of  Creoles  reside 
here  in  the  capacity  of  servants,  mechanics,  or  small  shop- 
keepers ;  and  it  was  gratifying  to  see  any  efforts  made  for 
their  moral  and  spiritual  benefit,  especially  as  those  efforts 
appeared  to  be  attended  with  evidence  that  good  was  done. 
As  an  instance  of  this  I  must  mention  that,  about  a  month 
after  the  anniversary,  my  friend,  M.  Le  Brun,  senior,  was 
agreeably  surprised  one  morning  by  a  colored  man  coming 
to  him  and  informing  him  that  he  and  another  man  had 
made  up  their  minds  to  build  at  Grande  Kiviere  a  substan- 
tial stone  chapel,  fifty  feet  long  and  twenty  or  twenty-five 
feet  wide ;  that  he  possessed  a  piece  of  ground  in  an  eligi- 
ble place,  which  he  would  give  for  the  purpose ;  and  that 
when  the  chapel  was  finished  he  would  at  once  give  him 
possession  of  it.  When  I  left  for  my  second  visit  to  Mada- 
gascar, the  ground  was  marked  out,  and  preparations  for  a 
commencement  made.  Before  I  finally  left  the  colony  the 
chapel  was  finished,  and  was  filled  with  hearers  every  Sun- 
day. 

Besides  my  interest  in  the  religious  improvement  of  the 
people,  other  objects  sometimes  led  me  to  Grande  Riviere. 
Soon  after  my  arrival  at  Mauritius  I  had  made  the  acquaint- 
ance of  Dr.  Powell,  who  had  charge  of  the  Lunatic  Asy- 
lum at  Grande  Riviere  and  resided  there.  He  was  familiar 
with  chemistry,  and  had  recently  commenced  the  practice 
of  photography.  As  I  had  brought  out  the  requisite  ap- 
paratus, and  had  attempted  to  take  some  of  the  more  strik- 
ing views  in  the  neighborhood,  as  well  as  portraits  of  indi- 


CHAP.  iv.  PHOTOGRAPHY  IN  THE  TROPICS.  105 

viduals,  especially  such  as  were  good  specimens  of  the  dif- 
ferent races  to  be  found  in  Port  Louis ;  and  as  I  had  often 
experienced  disappointment  in  the  results,  arising  from 
causes  which,  under  conditions  of  light  and  of  atmosphere 
so  different  from  those  of  England,  it  was  not  easy  at  first 
either  to  comprehend  or  rectify,  I  was  glad  to  have  occa- 
sional recourse  to  Dr.  Powell,  in  order  that  we  might  com- 
pare notes  and  help  each  other  out  of  difficulties. 

My  difficulties  arose  from  diversified  causes.  Some  of 
them  were  subsequently  removed,  others  still  remained, 
either  owing  to  my  defective  knowledge  of  the  subject  or 
inability  to  procure  the  appropriate  remedies.  I  had  taken 
out  a  considerable  quantity  of  carefully -packed  waxed  and 
iodized  paper,  under  the  generally-inculcated  belief  that  it 
would  keep  good  for  any  length  of  time  in  any  climate ; 
but  I  found  it  useless. 

Yet,  notwithstanding  all  my  difficulties,  I  succeeded  in 
obtaining  valuable  memorials  of  my  visit  in  a  number  of 
correct  representations  of  some  of  the  most  rare  and  beauti- 
ful natural  objects  which  I  met  with,  both  in  Mauritius  and 
Madagascar — among  those  obtained  here  were  views  of  the 
town,  harbor,  and  shipping  from  the  battery  hill,  together 
with  some  attractive  portions  of  the  suburbs  and  adjacent 
mountains — and  to  these  I  was  able  to  add  portraits  of 
some  of  the  most  important  classes  of  the  people.  Nothing 
surprised  me  more  than  the  striking  contrasts  which  the 
physical  organization  of  the  natives  from  Madagascar  pre- 
sented, comprising  apparently  specimens  of  pure  African 
races,  with  the  Malayan  or  Polynesian;  and  presenting 
among  the  Hovas,  or  people  inhabiting  the  central  portion 
of  the  island,  a  remarkable  resemblance  to  the  European 
conformation  of  head  and  features. 

During  the  hottest  summer  months  few  people  remain  in 
Port  Louis  who  can  avoid  it,  and  as  there  could  be  no  com- 
munication with  Madagascar  during  the  first  three  months 


10G  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  iv. 

of  the  year,  and  consequently  nothing  requiring  my  partic- 
ular attention  at  the  port,  I  was  glad  to  avail  myself  of  ev- 
ery opportunity  that  offered  for  visiting  the  country  dis- 
tricts. On  the  13th  of  December  I  accompanied  M.  Le  Brun 
to  Plaines  Wilhelms,  to  attend  the  anniversary  services  of 
the  opening  of  the  chapel  and  school  at  M.  Cheron's.  We 
left  Port  Louis  early,  and  on  our  way  passed  numerous 
carts  loaded  with  sugar  or  timber,  generally  drawn  by 
mules  and  driven  by  Coolies.  The  loads  seemed  to  me 
heavy,  but  the  animals  drawing  them  were  in  good  condi- 
tion and  did  not  appear  overworked.  M.  Le  Brun  more 
than  once  remarked  on  the  different  mode  of  transporting 
timber,  sugar,  and  other  produce  now,  as  compared  with 
that  employed  during  many  years  after  his  arrival  in  the 
colony  in  1814.  There  were  then  few  beasts  of  draught  or 
burden  in  the  island.  Travelers  were  carried  from  place 
to  place  in  a  sort  of  palanquin  on  men's  shoulders.  Carts, 
from  whatever  distance  they  came,  with  whatever  they 
were  loaded,  whether  with  timber,  stones,  or  any  thing  else, 
were  all  drawn  by  slaves,  attended  by  their  drivers,  twenty 
slaves  being  sometimes  yoked  to  one  cart.  They  usually 
traveled  in  the  night,  as  they  were  able  to  draw  the  same 
load  a  much  greater  distance  then  than  during  the  oppress- 
ive heat  of  the  day. 

Our  road  lay  through  a  succession  of  extensive  sugar- 
plantations,  and  we  reached  our  destination,  a  distance  of 
ten  or  eleven  miles  from  Port  Louis,  before  nine  o'clock. 
Here  I  was  cordially  welcomed  by  M.  Cheron,  and  found  a 
small  pavilion  consisting  of  two  rooms  appropriated  to  my 
use.  After  a  cup  of  coffee  we  proceeded  to  the  premises 
which  M.  Cheron  has,  with  great  liberality  and  desire  for 
the  welfare  of  those  around  him,  appropriated  to  religious 
purposes.  The  chapel  is  a  neat  stone  building,  with  a  paved 
stone  floor  and  a  metal  roof,  surmounted  by  a  cupola  and 
bell  The  building  is  plainly  fitted  up,  and  will  hold  200 


CHAP.  ir.     ANNIVERSAEY  AT  PLAINES  WILHELMS.  107 

persons.  At  a  short  distance  a  comfortable  house,  compris- 
ing five  or  six  rooms,  has  been  built  for  the  residence  of  a 
missionary,  and  in  the  yard  attached  to  the  house  is  a  stone 
kitchen.  I  looked  over  the  residence,  which  for  its  small 
size  is  well  arranged.  M.  Cheron  had  written  to  England 
for  a  missionary  to  be  sent  to  this  station,  and  expressed 
himself  ready  to  contribute  liberally  toward  his  support. 

Soon  after  we  had  assembled  in  the  chapel,  the  scholars, 
most  of  them  colored  children,  but  dressed  in  white,  were 
marched  from  the  school  to  the  chapel.  The  master  stood 
behind  a  table,  on  which  a  number  of  books  very  tastefully 
bound  were  placed.  The  parents  of  the  children  and  the 
visitors  sat  around.  A  number  of  little  girls  and  boys  re- 
cited pieces  of  poetry,  or  dialogue,  in  French.  The  venera- 
ble pastor,  M.  Le  Brun,  offered  up  prayer  on  their  behalf, 
and  gave  a  short  address.  The  master  read  a  paper  on  the 
advantages  and  responsibilities  of  education,  after  which  the 
most  successful  and  well-behaved  scholars  were  called  one 
by  one  to  the  table  to  receive  their  prizes.  When  the  mas- 
ter had  announced  the  ground  of  the  award,  one  of  the  vis- 
itors gave  the  book  appropriated  to  the  successful  scholar, 
at  the  same  time  placing  a  garland  of  flowers,  consisting 
chiefly  of  roses,  upon  the  head  of  the  delighted  child.  By 
this  arrangement  it  sometimes  happened  that  a  father,  moth- 
er, or  grandmother  rewarded  and  crowned  their  own  little 
child.  It  was  the  first  time  I  had  witnessed  any  thing  of 
the  kind,  and  I  could  not  but  regard  this  simple  and  grace- 
ful performance  as  an  agreeable  means  of  enhancing  the 
gratification  of  both  parties. 

At  the  close  of  the  examination  the  anniversary  service 
in  the  chapel  commenced,  and  M.  Le  Brun  preached  a  plain, 
instructive,  and  useful  sermon  to  an  attentive  congregation. 
The  chapel  was  full,  a  number  of  friends  having  come  from 
a  distance.  At  the  conclusion  of  the  service  the  children 
were  regaled  with  a  sort  of  sweetened  drink,  or  sirup,  and 


108  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  iv. 

we  returned  to  M.  Cheron's,  where  a  company  of  between 
twenty  and  thirty  sat  down  to  what  was  designated  a  dejeu- 
ner, but  in  reality  a  substantial  dinner,  under  the  broad  ve- 
randa outside  the  house. 

M.  Cheron  is  a  person  of  color,  and  a  man  of  great  force 
of  character,  as  well  as  energy  and  intelligence ;  a  respecta- 
ble and  prosperous  planter,  owning  more  than  one  estate,  . 
and  employing  356  Indian  laborers.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
church  under  the  pastoral  care  of  M.  Le  Brun,  in  Port  Louis, 
and  a  zealous  and  efficient  coadjutor  in  the  promotion  of 
measures  for  the  instruction  and  spiritual  benefit  of  the  peo- 
ple in  the  district  in  which  he  resides,  and  where  he  is  held 
in  high  and  deserved  estimation. 

Toward  evening  I  walked  with  M.  Charon  over  part  of 
his  plantation,  admiring  the  view  of  rich  and  varied  land- 
scape of  cane-fields  and  mountains  which  successive  eleva- 
tions afforded,  and  almost  astonished  at  the  size  attained  by 
the  canes,  which  in  some  places  were  twelve  or  fifteen  feet 
high. 

Soon  after  nine  the  next  morning  I  joined  the  family  as- 
sembly in  the  great  house.  It  was  quite  a  patriarchal  gath- 
ering. Besides  M.  and  Mme.  Cheron,  and  their  oldest  son 
and  daughter  in  the  prime  of  youthful  life,  the  father  and 
mother  of  the  former  Mme.  Charon,  and  one  of  her  sisters, 
were  permanent  members  of  the  household.  Then  there 
was  another  sister,  a  widow,  and  several  daughters,  besides 
others  more  or  less  related  to  the  hospitable  host.  All  ap- 
peared to  constitute  one  harmonious  family.  The  break- 
fast-table was  spread  at  one  end  of  a  large  veranda,  per- 
haps eight  feet  wide,  and  extending  the  whole  length  of  the 
house.  The  viands  were  abundant,  rice  being  the  substitute 
for  bread,  and,  as  a  guest,  I  was  provided  with  tea. 

In  the  forenoon  I  accompanied  M.  Che'ron  to  his  sugar- 
works,  where  the  new  processes  of  preparing  the  sugar  by 
vacuum  pans  were  in  operation,  by  which  means  some  thou- 


CHAP.  iv.     PLACE  OF  WORSHIP  FOR  THE  MALAGASY.         109 

\ 
sand  pounds  of  sugar,  finely  crystallized  and  beautifully 

white,  were  produced  every  day.  On  returning,  I  found 
several  of  the  scholars  who  had  been  successful  at  the  ex- 
amination waiting  for  the  fulfillment  of  a  promise  I  had  made 
them  on  the  previous  day  of  taking  their  likenesses,  and 
with  some  I  succeeded,  apparently  much  to  their  satisfaction. 
In  my  evening  walk  I  was  much  amused  to  see  the  various 
pursuits  carried  on  in  different  parts  of  the  establishment, 
rendering  it  altogether  very  much  like  a  village.  By  the 
road-side  was  a  shop  kept  by  one  of  M.  Cheron's  relatives, 
in  which  clothing,  cutlery,  crockery- ware,  and  groceries  were 
sold.  There  were  also,  in  other  parts  of  the  premises,  a  car- 
penter's shop,  a  smith's,  a  wheelwright's,  and  a  cooper's. 
Later  in  the  evening  my  photographs  and  stereoscope  seem- 
ed to  afford  the  different  members  of  the  family  great  enter- 
tainment, and  M.  Cheron  contributed  much  valuable  infor- 
mation relative  to  the  former  state  of  the  neighborhood. 

A  few  days  after  my  return  from  Plaines  Wilhelms,  I 
accompanied  M.  Le  Brun  to  the  opening  of  a  new  place  for 
religious  instruction  among  the  Malagasy  residing  in  the 
camp  or  suburb,  along  the  foot  of  the  signal  hill.  Many  of 
the  former  slaves  in  the  island  were  natives  of  Madagascar, 
or  the  descendants  of  such.  A  number  of  the  Malagasy  still 
retain  their  native  language,  and  to  this  number  additions 
are  made  of  those  who  from  time  to  time  have  reached  the 
colony  in  search  of  employment,  and  it  was  thought  desira- 
ble to  provide  a  place  in  the  midst  of  their  own  location  in 
which  religious  instruction  might  be  given  to  the  adults,  in 
addition  to  that  already  provided  for  their  children.  With 
this  view  the  building  now  appropriated  to  religious  wor- 
ship had  been  provided.  The  services  here  on  the  Sabbath 
and  week  days  are  still  continued. 

The  day  after  the  house  for  Malagasy  worship  was  opened, 
viz.,  the  24th  of  December,  the  air  was  unusually  oppressive, 
and  there  were  indications  of  an  approaching  hurricane. 


110  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  iv. 

The  ships  in  the  harbor  lowered  their  upper  masts  and 
yards,  but  toward  evening  the  atmosphere  became  more  set- 
tled, and  the  next  day,  which  was  Sunday,  and  also  Christ- 
mas-day, though  hot,  was  remarkably  fine.  I  went  out  to 
Mr.  Kelsey's,  into  whose  family  circle  I  was  admitted  as  one 
of  their  Christmas  party.  Between  nine  and  ten  I  returned, 
greatly  enjoying  my  walk.  The  mild,  soft,  fragrant  atmos- 
phere, and  the  bright  starlight  of  a  cloudless  sky,  render 
the  evenings  here  unspeakably  refreshing  and  pleasant,  after 
the  fierce  burning  heat  of  the  day. 

My  friend,  Mr.  Kelsey,  having  arranged  to  take  his  usual 
New  Year's  holiday  on  the  31st  of  December,  and  having 
kindly  included  me  in  the  family  party,  I  was  glad  to  obtain 
a  seat  on  the  box  of  their  carriage  as  we  drove  away  from 
Latanier,  his  residence,  soon  after  six  o'clock.  It  was  Sat- 
urday, market-day,  and  for  some  time  I  could  do  little  more 
than  gaze  at  the  diversified  forms,  faces,  costumes,  and  vehi- 
cles which  thronged  the  road  leading  to  Port  Louis.  Among 
these  were  Indians  in  their  holiday  dresses  of  white  and 
scarlet ;  others  heavily  laden  with  large  baskets  full  of  ba- 
nanas, mangoes,  pine-apples,  or  peaches,  on  their  heads; 
and  numbers  of  Chinese  literally  bending  under  the  weight 
of  their  load  of  fruit  or  vegetables,  with  perhaps  half  a  dozen 
fowls  tied  at  the  top.  The  Indians  and  Africans  carry  their 
loads  on  their  heads,  but  the  Chinese  carry  theirs  at  the 
ends  of  an  elastic  stick  borne  across  the  shoulders.  These, 
in  an  almost  uninterrupted  stream,  occupied  the  sides  of  the 
road,  while  the  centre  was  traversed  by  a  constant  succes- 
sion of  large  carts  loaded  with  sugar,  and  drawn  by  mules 
or  bullocks ;  besides  which  were  the  cabriolets  and  gigs  of 
the  planters  or  merchants. 

After  proceeding  for  some  miles  in  a  southerly  direction 
parallel  to  the  coast,  we  turned  toward  the  interior,  and 
passed  through  a  rich  and  picturesque  part  of  the  island, 
different  in  some  respects  from  the  Moka,  and  Plaines  Wil- 


CHAP.  iv.  EXCUESION  INTO  THE  COUNTRY.  Ill 

helms  side,  but  equally  beautiful.  Our  road,  bordered  by 
large  tamarind  and  other  fine  trees,  among  which  was  the 
flamboyant,  o-rPoinciana  regia,  now  in  full  bloom,  lay  through 
a  valley  to  the  northward  of  Mountain  Long,  and  presented 
on  either  hand  plantations  of  cane  or  manioc,  with  the  huts 
of  Creoles  or  Coolies,  and  the  dwellings  of  planters.  More 
distant,  the  Bay  of  Tombs  lay  in  placid  repose  on  the  one 
hand,  and  the  lofty  and  singularly  formed  mountain  of  the 
Peter  Botte  on  the  other. 

The  cool  morning  air,  the  novel  aspects  of  the  scenery, 
both  of  mountain  and  plain,  combined  to  render  the  jour- 
ney interesting  and  pleasant,  and  I  was  musing  on  the  pro- 
fusion with  which  the  beneficent  Creator  had  diffused  over 
the  face  of  nature  forms  of  purity  and  beauty  almost  in  lav- 
ish exuberance,  when  I  noticed,  at  a  short  distance  from  the 
road,  an  Indian  woman  sitting  on  the  ground  among  the 
flowers  of  a  species  of  jessamine  growing  uninclosed  by  any 
fence  round  the  door  of  her  straw  hut.  She  held  a  bunch 
of  the  sweet  flowers  in  her  hand,  apparently  enjoying  their 
fragrance,  for  she  took  no  notice  of  our  passing,  and  was, 
perhaps,  in  thought,  far  away  among  the  flowers  with  which 
she  had  been  familiar  in  her  native  country. 

After  passing  for  some  distance  along  a  steep  descent,  we 
reached  a  stream  of  water,  and  alighted,  as  our  carriage 
could  proceed  no  farther.  After  crossing  the  brook,  we  as- 
cended by  a  steep  and  somewhat  circuitous  route,  until,  aft- 
er walking  about  three  quarters  of  a  mile,  .we  reached  the 
Grande  Donjon,  the  residence  of  Mr.  Kittery,  an  Indian  gen- 
tleman. The  house  with  this  remarkable  name  stands  on  a 
steep  pile  of  basaltic  or  volcanic  rock,  rising  almost  perpen- 
dicularly from  the  adjacent  valley.  The  proprietor  of  the 
place,  in  Indian  costume,  met  us  as  we  approached,  and 
gave  us  a  cordial  welcome,  which  was  repeated  by  his  wife, 
a  Mauritian  lady  of  French  parentage ;  and  after  our  walk 
we  were  glad  to  rest  ourselves  in  some  large  cane  arm-chairs 


112  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  IT. 

standing  about  under  the  trees  in  front  of  the  house.  While 
seated  here  refreshing  ourselves  with  a  cup  of  tea  and  its 
accompaniments,  which  Mrs.  Kelsey's  forethought  had  pro- 
vided, a  servant  brought  us  a  large  basketful  of  pine-ap- 
ples, and  soon  afterward  quite  a  hamperful  of  ripe  peach- 
es, which  made  an  agreeable  addition  to  our  breakfast.  I 
then  explored  the  garden  in  front  of  the  house,  which  was 
almost  inclosed  on  three  sides  with  roses  in  full  bloom.  The 
pretty  little  noisette  TOSGjfeliciieperpetuelle,was  conspicuous 
among  them,  as  was  another,  like  Devoniensis,  only  paler. 
In  this  mountain  garden  I  found  the  Clerodendron  falcata  in 
splendid  bloom,  with  blue  hydrangeas,  China  asters,  agera- 
tum,  kaliopsis,  Lilium  longiflora,  Brompton  stocks,  verbenas, 
heliotropes,  and  many  other  familiar  plants. 

Beyond  the  garden  to  the  west  was  a  terrace,  also  border- 
ed with  roses,  which  commanded  a  fine  view  of  the  valley 
along  which  we  had  traveled,  with  the  stream  winding  its 
way  to  the  sea,  the  woods,  plantations,  and  dwellings  spread 
over  the  plain,  and  the  wide  ocean  beyond.  Our  host  next 
led  us  through  his  plantation  of  fruits  and  spices.  The  lat- 
ter consisted  chiefly  of  cloves.  During  the  early  part  of  the 
French  occupation  of  Mauritius  great  attention  was  given 
to  the  introduction  and  culture  of  spices ;  and  though  the 
changes  that  have  since  taken  place  in  the  commercial  in- 
tercourse with  the  spice-growing  islands  of  the  East  have 
rendered  their  production  in  Mauritius  less  important  and 
profitable,  a  few  plantations  are  still  to  be  seen.  The  trees, 
about  twenty  feet  high,  were  many  of  them  in  full  blossom. 
The  parasite  vanilla  was  here  cultivated  as  an  article  of 
commerce,  for  the  sake  of  the  perfume  it  supplies.  Passing 
down  the  mountain-side  through  a  thick  grove  of  mango- 
trees,  we  visited  some  chalybeate  springs,  where  the  ferru- 
ginous color  of  the  rock  and  soil  around  indicated  the  abun- 
dance of  iron  in  the  spring.  Soon  after  three  in  the  after- 
noon we  returned  from  our  walk,  and  found  a  very  accept- 


CHAP.  iv.  PREPARATIONS  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR'S  FEAST.  113 

able  tiffin  or  luncheon  awaiting  us,  in  which  the  greatest 
rarity  to  me  was  a  fruit  called  Barbadoes  cherry.  About 
four  we  took  our  leave,  much  gratified  by  the  intelligence 
and  urbanity  of  our  host. 

It  was  the  eve  of  New  Year's  day,  a  season  of  general 
festivity  here,  and  of  this  we  soon  perceived  various  indica- 
tions. As  we  traveled  along  I  could  not  help  noticing  the 
activity  with  which  colored  butchers,  male  and  female,  were 
cutting  up  large  pigs  and  other  animals,  generally  suspend- 
ed from  the  branch  of  a  large  tamarind-tree  by  the  road- 
side ;  while  crowds  were  gathered  round,  either  admiring 
the  animal  or  waiting  for  a  portion  of  it.  We  also  met 
many  a  toil-worn  beast,  horse,  donkey,  or  mule,  drawing 
out  a  whole  Creole  family,  father,  mother,  children,  and 
servant,  to  some  country  cousin's,  for  the  coming  holiday. 

Some  of  the  Indian  huts  were  already  ornamented  in 
honor  of  the  new  year  with  strings  of  flowers  hung  along 
the  front  of  the  verandas — for  almost  every  hut,  however 
small,  can  boast  a  veranda.  In  one  place  I  saw  an  Indian 
under  a  tree  with  a  number  of  strings  of  flowers  for  sale. 
The  flowers  seemed  to  be  the  orange-colored  Allamanda 
Schottiij  and  a  fragrant  plumaria,  very  abundant  just  now. 
Several  parties  were  examining  the  flowers,  and  the  vender 
was  stretching  out  his  arms  just  as  we  were  passing  by,  so 
as  to  show  one  of  his  wreaths  to  the  best  advantage.  But 
the  most  gratifying  of  all  these  sights  to  me  were  the  New 
Year's  gifts,  which  nearly  every  one  seemed  to  be  carrying 
home.  Some  miles  before  we  reached  Port  Louis  we  passed 
young  or  middle-aged  Creole  men  and  women  bearing  on 
their  heads  the  baskets  in  which,  in  the  morning,  they  had 
carried  their  fruit,  vegetables,  or  poultry  for  sale,  and  in 
almost  every  one  of  these  baskets  a  child's  toy  was  to  be 
seen.  Sometimes  the  leg  of  a  wooden  horse,  a  painted 
wagon,  a  drum,  or  the  long  tin  barrel  of  a  painted  gun 
would  protrude  from  beneath  a  handkerchief  or  other  loose 

H 


114  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  iv. 

wrapper.  Besides  these  there  were  dressed  dolls  without 
number  in  the  carriages,  as  well  as  in  the  baskets  of  the  pe- 
destrians ;  and  it  spoke  well  for  the  social  affections  of  the 
laboring  classes  that  their  little  ones  received  so  large  a  share 
of  consideration.  Indeed,  it  struck  me  that  the  people  gen- 
erally appeared  fond  of  their  children,  and,  were  it  not  for 
the  influence  exerted  to  dissuade  the  parents  from  sending 
them  to  the  government  schools,  the  advancement  .of  the 
whole  race  would  be  much  more  rapid  than  it  is. 

I  reached  home  about  seven  in  the  evening,  and  in  the 
review  of  the  year  thus  brought  to  its  close  felt  abundant 
cause  for  grateful  acknowledgment  of  Divine  goodness. 

The  first  day  of  1854  was  a  Sabbath  day.  The  chapel  in 
which  M.  Le  Brun  preached  on  this  day  was  densely  crowd- 
ed. The  seats  along  the  aisles  were  filled,  and  numbers 
sat  on  the  pulpit  stairs.  There  was  also  a  larger  attend- 
ance than  usual  at  the  port-office,  and  the  attendance  at 
the  communion  -  service  in  the  afternoon  was  numerous, 
many  appearing  to  be  deeply  impressed  with  the  solemnity 
of  the  occasion. 

After  preaching  in  the  forenoon  I  visited  the  hospital, 
and,  on  returning  home,  found  the  thermometer  standing  at 
88°  in  the  coolest  part  of  the  house.  Sometimes  it  was 
higher  than  this,  but  I  scarcely  ever  felt  more  oppressed  by 
the  heat  than  on  this  day.  The  air  seemed  to  scorch  the 
nostrils  and  lips  in  breathing.  A  strange  contrast,  I  found 
afterward,  was  presented  by  my  account  of  the  temperature 
and  that  which  my  friends  in  England  experienced  on  the 
same  day. 

A  somewhat  curious,  but  official,  transaction  which  took 
place  about  this  time  may  serve  to  show  the  wide  difference 
which  exists  between  the  political  or  diplomatic  negotia- 
tions of  one  country  and  those  of  another.  Anxious  to 
evince  their  entire  cordiality  in  the  friendly  relations  re- 
cently established,  the  government  of  Madagascar  sent  to 


CHAP.  iv.  VISIT  TO  BEAU  BASSIN.  115 

the  Governor  of  Mauritius  informing  him  that  as  the  trade 
was  reopened  they  wished  to  be  friendly  with  all ;  and  he 
was  therefore  at  liberty,  if  he  chose,  to  send  for  the  skulls 
of  his  countrymen  and  of  the  French  that  were  fixed  on 
poles  at  Tamatave,  and  to  have  them  buried  in  such  man- 
ner as  he  preferred.  Accordingly  a  non-commissioned  of- 
ficer was  soon  afterward  sent  to  Tamatave  for  this  purpose. 
But,  on  arriving,  he  found  that  the  skulls  had  been  pre- 
viously removed  by  the  French,  and  buried  at  the  Isle  of 
St.  Mary's. 

At  the  close  of  the  first  week  in  January  I  had  the  pleas- 
ure of  welcoming  to  Mauritius  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Kennedy,  who, 
after  a  visit  to  England  for  the  sake  of  health,  were  on 
their  way  to  Benares,  in  India,  as  missionaries.  They  were 
hospitably  entertained  at  Mr.  Kelsey's,  as  were  also  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Hall,  who  subsequently  arrived  on  their  way  to 
their  important  field  of  missionary  labor  at  Madras,  and 
who,  after  a  very  brief  but  pleasant  season  of  intercourse, 
resumed  their  voyage. 

The  weather  was  now  becoming  increasingly  oppressive, 
the  thermometer  in  the  shade  averaging  90°  and  upward, 
and  I  was  glad,  toward  the  close  of  the  month,  to  repeat 
my  visit  to  Beau  Bassin,  the  residence  of  Mr.  Brownrigg, 
situated  on  Plaines  Wilhelms,  about  six  miles  from  Port 
Louis.  My  welcome,  as  on  a  former  occasion,  was  most 
cordial.  The  comfortable  pavilion  which  I  had  before  oc- 
cupied was  again  appropriated  to  my  use ;  and,  besides  the 
refreshing  coolness  of  the  air,  as  compared  with  that  of 
Port  Louis,  I  enjoyed  the  pleasure  of  feeling  that  I  was  no 
longer  a  stranger  in  the  place. 

Beau  Bassin  derives  its  name  from  its  good  supply  of 
water,  contained  in  several  capacious  and  somewhat  orna- 
mental tanks  or  large  reservoirs.  The  house,  though  not 
modern,  is  cool,  spacious,  and  convenient.  The  number  of 
pavilions  in  front,  and  of  native  huts  in  the  rear,  with  cow- 


116  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  iv. 

sheds,  stables,  and  coach-houses,  give  the  establishment  al- 
most the  appearance  of  a  village.  The  plantation  itself  is 
said  to  be  large;  but  around  the  house  were  extensive 
mango-groves,  with  coffee  and  banana  growing  beneath 
the  trees,  and  an  excellent  kitchen-garden,  among  the  cu- 
riosities of  which  was  an  apple-tree  in  blossom  which  had 
frequently  borne  excellent  fruit.  Several  young  trees,  off- 
shoots from  the  parent  tree,  were  growing  around.  In  front 
of  the  house  were  a  number  of  flower-beds  of  varied  form 
and  size,  one  of  the  largest  being  surrounded  with  roses. 
The  large  clerodendron,  apparently  falcata,  was  the  most 
abundant  among  the  plants.  Of  these  there  were  hund- 
reds, some  large  bushy  plants  exhibiting,  with  great  effect, 
their  tall  spikes  of  dazzling  red  flowers.  Mingled  with 
these  was  the  Larpenta  capensis,  and  the  purple  lantana 
climbing  over  the  veranda  and  trellis-work  which  shaded 
the  rooms  adjoining  the  dwelling.  I  obtained  a  pleasant 
memorial  of  my  visit  in  some  photographic  views  of  the 
house,  and  several  portions  of  the  gardens,  as  well  as  of  a 
number  of  rare  and  well-grown  trees.  Among  the  latter 
was  a  luxuriant-growing  Artocarpus  integrifolia,  or  Jack-tree, 
with  a  number  of  enormous  fruit  hanging  nearly  ripe  from 
different  parts  of  the  trunk  and  larger  branches.  This  is  a 
species  of  bread-fruit,  and  though  the  flavor  is  strong,  the 
pulp  is  eaten  by  the  Creoles;  and  ^he  seeds,  which  are 
large  and  contain  a  fleshy  kernel,  are  said,  when  baked  or 
roasted,  to  be  quite  palatable.  When  I  had  fixed  my  cam- 
era, I  asked  one  or  two  of  the  coolies  to  stand  near  the 
tree,  to  show  the  size  .of  the  fruit  .as  compared  with  the 
Indian's  head. 

I  accompanied  Mr.  Brownrigg  to  Wolmar,  one  of  the  es- 
tates under  his  charge  at  Black  Eiver,  about  ten  miles  from 
Beau  Bassin.  I  greatly  enjoyed  the  ride,  as  the  road  lay 
through  a  part  of  the  country  in  a  high  state  of  cultivation, 
occasionally  presenting  new  combinations  of  wooded  and 


THE  JACK-TREE. 


117 


ARTOCABFUS   INTEG1SIFOUA,    OB  JACK-TBEE. 


mountainous  scenery.  On  our  way  I  saw  a  beautiful  tree 
of  the  yellow-flowering  Colvillea  in  blossom.  This  tree  was 
introduced  by  M.  Bojer  from  Madagascar.  Although  a  no- 
ble tree,  it  is  less  magnificent  than  the  Poinciana  regia.  The 
estate  of  Wolmar  comprises  about  1200  acres,  and  yields 
excellent  cane.  The  works  are  furnished  with  vacuum- 
pans,  and  some  of  the  most  recent  improvements.  I  here 
saw  for  the  first  time,  in  its  different  stages,  the  whole  proc- 
ess of  sugar-making,  from  the  grinding  of  the  cane  to  the 
final  drying  of  the  crystallized  sugar.  On  this  estate,  which 
is  low,  and  near  the  sea,  there  were  some  of  the  largest  trees 
I  had  seen  in  the  island,  especially  the  Badamia.  I  noticed 
here,  what  I  had  also  observed  elsewhere,  that  whatever 


118  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  iv. 

might  be  the  size  of  the  trunks  of  the  trees,  most  of  the  large 
branches  appeared  to  have  been  broken  off  at  a  short  dis- 
tance from  the  main  stem,  while  the  indentations  and  seams 
in  different  parts  of  the  trunk  itself  indicated  that  a  great 
arm  of  the  tree  had  been  violently  broken  off  or  torn  out, 
leaving  in  these  fractured  limbs  and  scarred  trunks  a  memo- 
rial of  the  force  of  the  hurricanes  which  occasionally  sweep 
across  the  island. 

The  sky  became  overcast  toward  the  end  of  the  week,  the 
wind  tempestuous,  and  the  rapid  fall  of  the  barometer  indi- 
cated the  approach  of  a  hurricane.  Guns,  as  signals  of  dis- 
tress, were  heard  during  the  Saturday  night;  and  on  Sun- 
day, the  29th  of  January,  when  Mr.  W.  Brownrigg  kindly 
drove  me  into  Port  Louis  that  I  might  discharge  my  Sab- 
bath duties,  I  found  but  a  small  assemblage,  all  the  ships 
that  could  leave  having  put  to  sea.  In  the  morning  a  Dutch 
vessel  came  in  dismasted  and  otherwise  injured.  During 
the  day,  I  also  received  letters  from  Madagascar,  a  vessel 
having  arrived  in  the  unusually  short  time  of  four  days 
from  Tamatave.  Keturning  to  Plaines  Wilhelms  in  the 
cool  of  the  evening  was  exceedingly  pleasant ;  on  the  fol- 
lowing day,  however,  the  rain  came  down  in  sheets,  and  the 
plain  was  flooded.  But  whenever  thus  confined  to  the 
house,  I  usually  found  my  way  to  the  well-furnished  li- 
brary; and,  notwithstanding  the  unsettled  state  of  the 
weather,  time  passed  very  pleasantly  at  Beau  Bassin ;  for 
I  felt  it  a  privilege  to  become  acquainted  with  so  excellent 
a  specimen  of  the  colonial  life  of  an  English  family. 

It  was  the  custom  of  Mrs.  Brownrigg  and  her  mother  to 
spend  an  hour  or  more  in  teaching  in  a  school  which  had 
been  established  for  educating  the  children  of  the  laborers 
on  the  estate  and  others  in  the  neighborhood.  The  school- 
master had  lately  died,  and,  until  another  could  be  obtain- 
ed, these  benevolent  ladies,  notwithstanding  the  heat  of  the 
weather  and  the  unavoidable  fatigue,  daily  occupied  them- 


CHAP.  iv.         PEEPARATIONS  FOR  A  HURRICANE.  119 

selves  in  this  manner.  The  school  was  well  furnished,  and 
some  of  the  children  had  made  good  progress.  The  Indian 
children  were  by  far  the  most  apt,  but  the  Creoles  were 
more  docile. 

Besides  the  members  of  this  hospitable  family,  I  had  here 
the  pleasure  of  meeting  with  several  agreeable  and  intelli- 
gent friends,  among  them  Mr.  Beke,  whom  I  afterward  vis- 
ited at  his  own  residence,  receiving  from  him  many  atten- 
tions, and  learning  much  of  Abyssinia  and  Arabia,  in  which 
countries  he  had  been  a  distinguished  and  observant  trav- 
eler. 

The  weather  in  Mauritius  is  usually  unsettled  during  the 
first  three  months  of  the  year,  and  it  is  at  this  season  that 
hurricanes  occur  in  these  regions.  On  the  llth  of  Febru- 
ary, having  heard  a  gun  fired  from  the  fort,  which  I  under- 
stood was  a  signal  for  all  vessels  to  take  down  their  upper 
masts  and  yards,  while  at  the  same  time  the  flag  was  flying 
at  the  port-office  to  warn  all  vessels  outside  to  put  out  to 
sea,  I  hastened  to  the  post-office  with  my  letters,  deeming  it 
probable  that  the  packet  might  sail  earlier  than  the  appoint- 
ed hour,  in  order  to  avoid  the  storm ;  and  on  going  after- 
ward to  the  landing-place,  I  saw  the  flag  with  a  blue  cross 
flying  at  the  port-office,  indicating  that  a  gale  or  hurricane 
might  be  expected.  The  barometer  had  been  sinking  all 
day.  The  sky  was  dark,  the  rain  frequent,  the  scud  was  fly- 
ing in  wild  confusion,  and  the  wind  increasing  every  hour. 
I  found  the  Calcutta  steam-packet,  instead  of  departing,  had 
taken  down  her  upper  yards.  All  the  small  vessels  had 
been  removed  from  the  sides  of  the  wharves  where  they 
were  usually  moored,  the  boats  all  drawn  up,  all  the  bags 
of  sugar  or  other  merchandise  removed  from  the  sheds  near 
the  quays,  and  on  board  all  the  vessels  the  utmost  activity 
appeared,  heightened  by  the  shouting  or  the  songs  of  the 
sailors  of  different  nations  as  they  were  sending  down  their 
yards,  and  many  of  them  their  top-gallant  masts ;  while  the 


120  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  iv. 

ships  near  the  edge  of  the  harbor  were  taking  up  their  an- 
chors and  running  out  to  sea  to  avoid  being  driven  on  shore. 

Among  the  preparations  on  shore  I  noticed  that  many  of 
the  straggling  branches  of  trees  in  the  public  gardens  had 
been  cut  off,  so  as  to  afford  the  wind  less  hold  of  them. 
The  ground  was  already  strewn  with  the  small  branches 
and  green  leaves  cut  from  the  trees  by  the  blast.  It  was 
very  dark  all  the  rest  of  the  afternoon,  and  the  wind  and 
rain  continued  to  increase.  As  I  walked  home  through  the 
Company's  garden  the  water-course  was  full,  and  the  usual- 
ly small  stream  was  flowing  along  a  rapid,  turbid,  mountain 
torrent.  On  looking  toward  the  Pouce  and  adjacent  mount- 
ains I  counted  nine  different  cascades  rushing  from  the  hol- 
lows among  the  ridges,  and  pouring  in  foam  and  spray  down 
the  mountain  sides,  where  at  other  times  no  stream  could 
be  seen.  M.  Le  Brun  sent  to  his  son  to  have  the  house  in 
which  he  lived  carefully  fastened,  and  every  loose  shutter 
or  board  nailed  up.  Our  residence,  as  well  as  most  of  the 
houses,  was  furnished  with  strong,  heavy,  outside  shutters, 
called  hurricane  shutters.  It  had  extra  doors  of  the  same 
land,  and  these  were  all  well  secured.  In  every  direction, 
during  the  rest  of  the  evening,  nothing  was  heard  but  the 
hammering  of  heavy  iron  bolts  or  bars  and  the  nailing  up 
of  doors  and  shutters.  The  yard  or  cross-piece  attached  to 
the  signal-post  was  lowered,  and  every  precaution  for  secu- 
rity adopted. 

The  wind,  blowing  from  the  northward  and  eastward, 
continued  to  increase  with  violent  and  fearful  gusts  until 
about  two  o'clock  in  the  morning,  when  it  changed  and 
blew  from  an  opposite  direction,  but  with  less  violence,  un- 
til daylight.  The  rain  then  ceased,  and  by  eight  or  nine 
o'clock  we  had  the  pleasure  of  beholding  the  sun  break 
through  the  clouds.  Our  yard  was  strewn  with  branches 
of  trees,  and  on  the  sides  of  the  trees  exposed  to  the  wind 
the  long  pendent  boughs  not  absolutely  broken  off  were 


CHAP.  iv.  EFFECTS  OF  THE  GALE.  121 

bent  inward  or  upward  by  the  force  of  the  gale.  In  walk- 
ing down  to  the  port-office,  although  1  did  not  see  any 
houses  unroofed,  I  was  struck  with  the  devastation  among 
the  trees.  Almost  every  tree  was  bent  toward  the  south- 
west, and  one  banyan-tree  in  the  Place  d'Armes  was  torn 
up  by  the  roots  and  lay  prostrate  on  the  ground.  There 
was  a  heavy  swell  rolling  into  the  harbor  but  no  damage 
among  the  ships,  which,  with  their  yards  and  masts  on  deck, 
looked  more  like  hulks  than  the  tall  vessels  they  had  ap- 
peared a  few  days  before.  Some  of  them  had  four  anchors 
out.  Scarcely  a  boat  was  seen  stirring  in  the  bay  during 
the  whole  day,  and  the  attendance  of  seamen  on  the  usual 
religious  service  at  the  port-office  was  exceedingly  small. 

In  the  afternoon,  when  I  accompanied  Mr.  Kelsey  and  his 
family  to  their  residence,  I  was  surprised  as  we  passed  through 
the  streets  to  see  bars  and  boards, nailed  across  so  many  of 
the  doors  and  windows  of  the  different  buildings,,  while  others 
were  buttressed  or  propped  up  with  strong  pieces  of  timber. 
It  is  said  that  if  the  wind  during  a  hurricane  loosens  a  door 
or  shutter,  and  finds  entrance  to  a  building,  it  tears  off  the 
roof  altogether,  and  scatters  it  in  fragments  around.  On 
visiting  the  ships  afterward,  I  learned  that  the  sailors  on 
board  all  the  ships  were  at  work  until  two,  and  on  some 
until  four  in  the  morning,  making  every  thing  secure,  and 
that  the  wind,  though  not  in  this  instance  amounting  to  a 
hurricane,  was  at  times  so  strong  as  to  lay  some  of  the  ships 
quite  on  their  sides. 

Notwithstanding  the  heavy  rains,  which  were  now  fre- 
quent, I  was  glad  whenever  I  could  to  get  away  to  the 
country  or  mountain  districts ;  and  soon  after  this  time  I 
visited  the  Royal  Gardens  at  Pamplemouses,  seven  or  eight 
miles  in  a  northerly  direction  from  Port  Louis.  I  had  more 
than  once  visited  them  before,  when  I  had  been  highly  grat- 
ified by  the  kind  attentions  of  Mr.  Duncan,  the  director,  and 
the  members  of  his  family,  from  whom  I  again  received  a 


122  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  iv. 

frank  and  hearty  welcome,  with  the  offer  of  such  accommo- 
dation as  they  could  furnish  for  my  photographic  operations. 
So  far  as  natural  objects  were  concerned,  no  place  in  Mau- 
ritius was  to  me  so  attractive  as  the  Royal  Gardens  at  Pam- 
plemouses.  They  cover  about  fifty  acres  of  most  excellent 
ground,  and  are  well  supplied  with  water.  They  appear  to 
have  been  originally  laid  out  on  a  truly  magnificent  scale. 
Long  walks  or  avenues,  with  stone  seats  at  intervals  on  both 
sides,  are  bordered  with  the  most  rare  and  valuable  trees  of 
both  hemispheres,  interspersed  with  an  almost  endless  va- 
riety of  shrubs  and  flowers.  Many  improvements  in  the  ar- 
rangement of  some  portions  of  the  grounds  were  in  progress ; 
and  the  whole  seemed  to  be  kept  in  as  good  order  as  the 
number  of  laborers  assigned  to  them  were  capable  of  main- 
taining. Many  of  the  useful  trees  and  plants  of  Europe  may 
be  found  here ;  and  the  number  of  choice  roses  recently  in- 
troduced by  Mr.  Duncan  adds  greatly  to  the  charm  and  va- 
riety of  the  attractions  of  the  place.  But  the  gardens  are 
especially  rich  in  the  productions  of  China,  India,  and  the 
Asiatic  Archipelago.  Some  of  the  most  choice  specimens 
are  from  Java  and  the  adjacent  islands,  while  there  are  oth- 
ers from  the  Continent  of  Africa,  as  well  as  from  Australia 
and  South  America.  There  is  one  noble  avenue  of  palmis- 
tes,  or  palms ;  it  is,  at  least,  four  hundred  yards  in  length, 
and  for  extent  and  beauty  is  probably  unequaled  in  any 
other  part  of  the  globe.  The  trees  are  remarkably  regular 
on  both  sides,  presenting  few  openings  or  chasms.  The 
tallest  are  forty  or  fifty  feet  high,  and  have  probably  been 
growing  where  they  now  stand  for  nearly  a  century.  The 
young  trees,  more  recently  planted,  nearer  the  centre  of  the 
walk,  cover  the  lower  parts  of  the  trunks  of  the  palms,  and 
add  greatly  to  the  graceful  beauty  of  the  vista,  along  which 
the  lines  of  lofty  waving  plumes  extend.  The  long  lines 
of  tall  and  stately  trunks,  crowned  with  these  plumes,  and 
stretching  along  like  an  almost  interminable  colonnade,  pre- 


CHAP.  iv.        KOYAL  GARDENS  AT  PAMPLEMOUSES.  123 

sent  one  of  the  most  singular  and  magnificent  spectacles 
which  it  is  possible  to  imagine. 

Almost  every  variety  of  the  palm  species,  or  form  of 
growth,  is  to  be  found  in  these  gardens,  and  I  was  much 
struck  with  the  graceful  slender  forms  of  some  beautiful 
arecas.  There  were  also  fine  specimens  of  the  Latania  ru- 
bra,  or  fan-leaved  palm,  and  the  singular-leaved  Caryota 
urens,  the  rofia-tree,  the  traveler's-tree,  and  Dombeya  cuspi- 
data,  the  last  three  from  Madagascar,  as  were  also  many  of 
the  rare  and  curious  plants  in  different  parts  of  the  grounds. 
There  were  some  large  trees  of  Adansonia,  and  hibiscus 
with  flowers  of  almost  every  hue,  growing  luxuriantly,  and 
requiring  scarcely  any  other  care  than  to  be  kept  within 
bounds  by  the  pruning-knife. 

"With  regard  to  the  vegetation  generally,  not  only  in  the 
garden,  but  other  parts  of  the  island,  I  was  often  struck  with 
the  almost  incredible  strength  and  rapidity  of  growth  in  the 
shoots  or  branches  of  some  kinds  of  trees,  which  frequently 
attained  ten  or  twelve  feet  in  length,  besides  producing 
smaller  lateral  branches,  in  a  single  season. 

Australian  trees  were  not  so  numerous,  perhaps,  as  might 
have  been  expected,  though  there  was  a  tolerably  well- 
grown  Norfolk  Island  pine  growing  in  a  conspicuous  situ- 
ation. Cinnamons  of  almost  every  kind,  nutmegs,  and  oth- 
er spices,  with  the  camphor-tree,  gum  copal,  India-rubber, 
tangena,  and  other  trees,  were  growing  as  freely  as  in  their 
native  forests.  There  were  also  some  specimens  of  teak 
from  India,  and  bread-fruit-trees  from  the  South  Sea  Islands. 

The  genius  of  St.  Pierre  has  rendered  the  whole  of  this 
neighborhood  a  sort  of  classic  region.  The  wreck  of  the 
St.  (reran,  in  1745,  took  place  on  the  adjacent  coast.  The 
neighboring  bay  is  called  the  Bay  of  Tombs,  because  it  is 
supposed  that  on  its  shores  Paul  and  Virginia  were  buried. 
At  Pamplemouses,  in  a  small  garden,  are  two  brick  and 
plaster  pedestals  supporting  a  couple  of  clay  or  coarse  terra- 


124  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  iv. 

cotta  urns,  placed  one  on  each  side  of  a  small  oblong  pond, 
and  surrounded  by  light  iron  railings;  these  are 'Called  the 
tombs  of  Paul  and  Virginia.  Each  of  these  memorials, 
standing  by  the  side  of  the  water,  is  shaded  by  a  clump  of 
bamboos.  When  I  went  with  Mr.  Duncan  to  look  at  them, 
they  appeared  rather  in  a  ruinous  state,  evidently  modern, 
and  entirely  apocryphal.  Nevertheless,  sixpence  is  required 
of  every  visitor  who  enters  the  garden  to  see  them. 

On  the  shores  of  the  Bay  of  Tombs,  and  about  ten  miles 
from  Port  Louis,  there  is  a  branch  missionary  station,  to 
which,  during  the  month  of  January,  I  paid  a  visit  in  com- 
pany with  M.  Le  Bran,  jun.  The  population  of  this  place 
is  scattered,  and  consists  chiefly  of  fishermen ;  but  they  have 
a  neat  native  chapel,  erected  on  a  piece  of  ground  near  the 
sea,  which  was  given  by  the  government.  On  the  Sabbath 
that  I  spent  there  it  was  well  attended,  though  there  was 
illness  in  several  of  the  families,  and  I  was  pleased  with  the 
earnestness  and  simple  piety  of  the  people.  There  was  an 
efficient  master  in  the  adjacent  government-school,  which 
appeared  to  be  a  great  blessing  to  the  neighborhood.  The 
missionary  station  was  at  that  time  without  a  teacher,  but 
an  industrious  and  pious  man  was  soon  afterward  appointed 
by  M.  Le  Brun  and  his  people  at  Port  Louis,  and  he  has 
since  labored  with  encouraging  success  in  this  humble  but 
interesting  sphere  of  usefulness. 

Nearer  to  Port  Louis,  though  in  the  same  direction,  viz., 
at  Eoche  Bois,  there  is  another  small  but  very  interesting 
station,  also  connected  with  M.  Le  Brun's  church  in  Port 
Louis,  where  the  people,  generally  Creole  laborers  and  small 
proprietors,  were  building  themselves  a  neat  stone  chapel. 
Among  this  little  community,  also,  the  school  and  the 
preaching  of  M.  Le  Brun  and  his  son  appeared  to  be  at- 
tended with  beneficial  results. 

I  also  visited  another  out-station,  Nouvelle  De'couverte, 
and  was  much  pleased  with  the  character  and  devotedness 


CHAP.  iv.     EXCURSION  TO  MISSIONARY  STATIONS.  125 

of  the  teacher.  I  only  regretted  that  there  were  so  few  in- 
habitants to  profit  by  his  exertions. 

On  my  way  back  from  Nouvelle  Decouverte,  we  visited 
one  of  the  most  perfect  miniature  cascades  I  have  met  with. 
The  stream,  three  or  four  feet  wide,  shoots  over  a  project- 
ing ledge  of  rock,  and  falls,  in  one  sheet,  from  a  height  of 
about  forty  feet,  into  a  deep  clear  basin,  twenty  or  thirty  feet 
across.  I  descended  to  the  edge  of  the  basin,  where  I  found 
some  beautiful  ferns,  and  was  surprised  to  see  a  number  of 
large  gold-fish  swimming  in  the  water.  I  asked  an  intelli- 
gent resident  in  the  village  who  was  with  us,  if  they  had 
been  purposely  put  there,  but  he  said,  "  No,  they  have  come 
down  with  the  stream."  In  an  English  domain  such  a  spot 
would  have  been  almost  invaluable. 

But  the  most  attractive  natural  objects  I  met  with  dur- 
ing this  excursion  were  the  number  of  large  and  exceed- 
ingly fine-grown  tree-ferns,  standing  sometimes  singly,  but 
more  frequently  in  clusters  6f  eight  or  ten,  and  growing  to 
the  height  of  from  seven  to  twenty  feet.  Nothing  could 
surpass  the  graceful  beauty  of  the  large,  feathery,  and  bright 
green  fronds  of  this  truly  elegant  class  of  plants,  which  were 
here  so  abundant  as  to  impart  the  charm  of  their  own  pecul- 
iar character  to  the  foliage  of  the  forest  in  which  they  grew. 

At  the  time  of  my  visit  to  this  station,  having  found  my 
health  somewhat  affected  by  the  oppressive  heat  of  the 
weather,  I  gladly  took  up  my  abode  for  some  time  with 
Madame  Michaud,  at  La  Jara,  situated  at  the  foot  of  the 
Peter  Botte  Mountain,  about  six  miles  from  Port  Louis,  «,nd 
about  as  far  from  the  missionary  station.  This  kind  lady 
received  me  very  cordially,  as  I  had  before  paid  her  a  visit 
in  company  with  Mr.  Kelsey,  who  usually  devoted  the 
days  observed  as  holidays  in  the  government  offices  to 
pleasant  excursions  into  the  country  with  his  family.  I 
did  not,  therefore,  feel  myself  a  stranger  in  the  place. 

The  mountain  scenery  in  this  neighborhood  was  peculiar- 


120  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  iv. 

ly  rich  and  beautiful,  and  I  found  my  health  improved 
during  the  short  time  I  remained  in  the  valley.  On  the 
occasion  of  my  visit  with  Mr.  Kelsey  I  had  accompanied 
him  and  his  youngest  son  to  Cre"  ve  Cceur,  a  sort  of  pass  on 
the  lowest  part  of  the  ridge  separating  the  valley  from  the 
plain  leading  to  Moka ;  I  have  rarely  enjoyed  a  mountain 
excursion  more.  Our  way  was  a  winding  path  made  by 
naked  feet  over  rocks,  and  stones,  and  streams,  passing  lit- 
tle low  cane  or  bamboo- walled  cottages,  and  through  gar- 
dens of  lentils,  pumpkins,  cucumbers,  sweet  potatoes,  bana- 
nas, and  maize.  Here  and  there  the  men  were  working  in 
their  gardens,  and  the  women  washing  linen  in  the  rippling 
stream,  or  at  the  edge  of  a  naturally-formed  basin,  into 
which  the  water  from  the  higher  parts  of  the  mountain 
flowed  in  miniature  falls.  The  people  appeared  to  be  chief- 
ly Chinese,  Africans  or  Malagasy,  and  Indians;  the  latter 
most  numerous.  Their  children — numbers  of  whom  were 
seen  about  the  huts — were  not  overburdened  with  clothing, 
but  had  splendid  heads  of  jetty  hair,  and  were  decorated 
with  silver  chains  or  rings  in  great  abundance  on  their 
necks,  waists,  arms,  wrists,  ankles,  and  toes. 

The  sheltered  position  of  the  upper  part  of  the  valley, 
and  the  moisture  produced  by  the  vicinity  of  the  mount- 
ains, seemed  to  favor  vegetation.  The  gardens  among 
which  we  passed  were  well  kept,  and  every  thing  was 
growing  most  luxuriantly.  There  was  a  vigor  and  fresh- 
ness in  all  the  plants  which  contrasted  strongly  with  those 
in  the  gardens  on  the  plain,  or  near  the  sea.  Among  the 
rare  and  choice  specimens  which  I  noticed  in  the  course  of 
our  walk,  were  a  very  fine  sort  of  the  Hibiscus  mulabilis, 
with  single  and  double  flowers,  the  latter  of  a  light  pink 
when  first  opened,  but  gradually  changing  to  a  rich  rose, 
sometimes  almost  a  violet  color,  and  equal  in  size  and  form 
to  a  good  hollyhock.  Besides  these  there  was  the  agreea- 
ble Clerodendronfragrans,  forming  sometimes  almost  a  thick- 
et, and  in  full  flower. 


CHAP.  iv.     MISSIONARY  EFFORTS  AT  PORT  LOUIS.  127 

During  the  second  week  in  May,  the  friends  attending  at 
the  Protestant  chapel  in  Port  Louis  held  the  annual  meet- 
ing of  their  missionary  society,  nominally  auxiliary  to  the 
London  Society,  but  devoted  exclusively  to  local  objects. 
I  was  glad  to  be  present  on  this  occasion,  and  to  be  made 
acquainted  more  fully  with  the  several  objects  to  which 
their  attention  was  directed,  as  well  as  with  their  apparent 
results.  With  much  pleasure  I  listened  to  the  statements 
of  the  several  committees  connected  with  their  out-stations, 
with  their  distribution  of  religious  tracts,  their  lending  li- 
brary, and  other  means  of  usefulness  among  their  country- 
men. The  payment  of  the  extraordinarily  large  sum  which 
the  building  of  their  substantial  chapel  had  cost  still  press- 
ed heavily  upon  them ;  but  there  was  a  prospect  of  the 
whole  being  paid  at  no  distant  period.  They  have  since 
added  an  important  Sunday-school  organization,  which 
promises  much  good.  The  island  of  Mauritius  has  present- 
ed many  difficulties  to  the  Protestant  missionary ;  but  the 
Eev.  J.  Le  Brun,  who  has  been  permitted  to  labor  forty 
years  in  the  island,  and  is  now  assisted  by  his  two  sons, 
must  feel,  in  the  days  of  his  declining  strength,  that  he  has 
not.labored  in  vain.  A  large  and  respectable  congregation 
of  colored  people  attend  his  ministry,  and  an  affectionate 
flock  in  Port  Louis  recognize  him  as  their  pastor.  Besides 
the  congregation  or  branch  stations  in  the  country,  there 
are  few  places  on  the  island  in  which  colored  persons  are 
not  met  with  who  have  derived  benefit  from  his  religious 
instruction ;  for  he  has  been  occupied  much  in  itinerant,  as 
well  as  stated  services,  always  preaching  the  Gospel  in  sim- 
plicity and  affection.  It  was  truly  gratifying  to  me  to  no- 
tice the  respect  with  which  h«  was  treated  by  all  classes,  as 
well  as  the  affection  evinced  toward  him  by  the  Creoles, 
not  only  in  Port  Louis,  but  in  other  parts  of  the  island. 
But,  above  all,  it  was  gratifying  to  feel  that  his  unpretend- 
ing yet  unremitted  labors  of  love  among  the  colored  people 


128  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CIIAP.  iv. 

fully  justify  the  esteem  and  affection  with  which  he  is  re- 
garded. 

Few  places  in  Port  Louis  are  more  replete  with  interest 
than  the  cemetery,  which  is  situated  outside  the  town  on  a 
low  flat  piece  of  ground,  at  the  southern  side  of  the  en- 
trance to  the  harbor.  A  winding  avenue  of  filao  trees 
leads  along  the  sea-shore  to  the  ground.  The  filao,  or  Ca- 
suarina  lateriflora,  is  a  tall  cypress-like  tree,  only  less  com- 
pact. The  wind  passing  over  its  leaves  produces  a  pecul- 
iarly mournful  and  monotonous  sound,  which  seems  to  ren- 
der this  long  avenue  a  fitting  approach  to  a  place  of  inter- 
ment. There  is  also  a  number  of  the  same  and  other  kinds 
of  trees  in  the  cemetery.  The  ground  is  extensive  and  well 
kept,  and  the  tombstones  or  monuments  are  numerous,  and 
some  of  them  highly  ornamented  and  costly.  All  earthly 
distinctions  seem  here  to  have  ceased.  The  mortal  remains 
of  Roman  Catholic  and  Protestant,  churchman  and  dissent- 
er, the  French  and  the  English,  the  civilian  and  the  soldier, 
the  white  man  and  the  black  man,  repose  in  peace  in  their 
one  common  resting-place. 

Many  of  the  newly-made  graves  were  decorated  with 
flowers,  and  on  others  vases  and  different  vessels  are  placed 
and  filled  with  flowers  of  the  aramanthine  species,  which 
are  frequently  renewed.  Among  the  graves  suggestive  of 
deep  interest  to  me,  I  noticed  that  of  Harriet  Newell,  wife 
of  one  of  the  first  missionaries  from  America  to  India,  A 
plain  marble  slab,  sent  from  her  native  country,  covers  her 
remains,  which  rest  near  the  trunk  of  a  large  filao  tree,  Oa- 
suarina  equisetifoKa.  A  light  iron  railing  surrounds  the 
stone. 

As  the  season  favorable  for  visiting  Madagascar  was  now 
approaching,  I  sent  a  letter  on  the  9th  of  May  to  the  au- 
thorities at  Antananarivo,  informing-  them  of  my  intention 
to  proceed  to  Tamatave  in  the  course  of  a  month,  and  ask- 
ing permission  to  visit  the  capital. 


CHAP.  iv.  CHOLERA  IN  PORT  LOUIS.  129 

i 

But  some  degree  of  apprehension  began  about  this  time 
to  be  felt  by  the  inhabitants,  in  consequence  of  two  cases 
of  Asiatic  cholera  having  occurred  at  Grande  Riviere,  two 
miles  from  the  town.  Two  vessels  from  India  had  recently 
arrived  with  Indian  laborers  on  board,  among  whom,  it  was 
reported,  this  disease  existed. 

Prompt  measures  were  taken  by  the  government  and  the 
municipality  to  arrest  the  progress  of  the  disease  and  to  mit- 
igate its  force.  The  prisoners  in  the  jail,  among  whom  the 
first  cases  in  the  town  had  appeared,  were  removed  on  board 
vessels  in  the  outer  harbor,  hired  for  the  occasion,  and  other 
sanitary  measures  were  adopted.  Still  the  cases  continued 
to  increase  in  number.  The  average  deaths  in  Port  Louis 
had  been  seventy  in  the  course  of  a  month,  but  before  the 
end  of  another  month  they  exceeded  that  number  daily. 
On  the  28th  of  May  there  were  eighty-six  deaths,  and  one 
hundred  and  three  interments.  The  weather  at  this  time 
was  extremely  sultry,  with  a  westerly  wind.  It  was  said 
10,000  persons  had  fled  from  Port  Louis  during  the  previ- 
ous two  days.  The  weather  subsequently  became  some- 
what cooler,  but  still  the  ravages  of  the  cholera  increased. 

The  population  of  Port  Louis  and  its  suburbs  is  about 
50,000,  but  during  the  first  week  in  June  the  deaths  fre- 
quently exceeded  one  hundred  per  day.  On  the  5th  of 
June  there  were  said  to  be  one  hundred  and  seventy  deaths, 
and  on  the  6th  one  hundred  and  thirty.  The  progress  and 
fatal  termination  of  the  disease  in  individual  cases  was 
frightfully  rapid.  The  wife  of  Mr.  Kelsey's  coachman,  a 
healthy  young  woman,  was  seized  late  in  the  evening,  and 
was  a  corpse  before  morning.  In  many  other  instances  it 
was  still  more  rapid,  and  I  heard  that  in  some  cases  scarcely 
two  hours  elapsed  between  seizure  and  death.  Every  kind 
of  vehicle  that  could  be  converted  into  a  sort  of  hearse  was 
engaged  by  the  municipality.  Some  of  these  were  always 
kept  standing  at  the  Town  Hall,  and  others  in  appointed 

I 


130  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP,  iv 

public  places  in  the  suburbs,  for  the  removal  of  the  bodies 
of  the  dead.  It  was  found  necessary  to  appoint  additional 
officers  and  assistants  at  the  office  for  registering  deaths  and 
granting  licenses  to  bury.  The  ordinary  business  of  the 
town  was  suspended  except  at  the  chemists  and  druggists' 
shops,  which  were  literally  thronged  from  morning  till  night. 
On  some  days  there  were  no  markets — butchers,  bakers, 
fishermen,  all  being  either  ill  or  dead,  or  flying  to  the  coun-. 
try  for  fear.  Day  after  day  the  public  journals  came  out 
printed  only  on  one  page,  and  that  containing  chiefly  form- 
ularies or  directions  for  the  treatment  of  the  disease.  The 
whole  town  was  a  scene  of  desolation,  nearly  one  half  of 
the  houses  and  shops  were  closed,  and  in  those  that  wer< 
open  only  one  attendant  could  be  found.  In  the  streets  few 
persons  were  met  except  those  who  hurried  along  with  med* 
icine.  Almost  the  only  carriages  seen  were  the  dead-carts. 
In  a  short  walk  one  morning  I  passed  seven ;  and,  on  in- 
quiring of  the  driver  of  one,  who  was  waiting  outside  the 
cemetery  as  I  left  it,  how  many  bodies  he  had  in  his  vehi- 
cle, he  answered  eight,  and  said  it  was  his  second  journey. 

M.  Le  Brun,  with  whom  I  resided,  sometimes  went  to  the 
cemetery  at  four  in  the  morning,  and  one  morning  had  five 
applications  to  attend  interments  before  breakfast.  It  was 
a  matter  of  personal  favor  to  obtain  a  coffin  for  a  relative 
or  friend,  or  even  to  secure  a  grave.  At  the  last  funeral  I 
attended  we  had  to  wait  on  the  ground  until  the  grave  was 
dug,  and  there  were  numbers  of  coffins  around  which  had 
to  remain  until  graves  could  be  prepared.  In  some  of  the 
districts  it  was  even  more  distressing.  At  Pamplemouses, 
as  I  was  informed  by  one  of  the  residents  there,  so  numer- 
ous were  the  deaths,  and  so  few  the  laborers,  that  they  dug 
a  large  pit  in  which  to  bury  the  dead  all  together,  and  be- 
fore the  pit  was  finished  no  less  than  forty  bodies  were  col- 
lected at  its  sides  for  interment.  It  would  be  impossible  to 
describe  the  state  of  feeling  which  pervaded  all  classes. 


CHAP.  iv.  FEAEFUL  RAVAGES  OF  CHOLERA.  131 

Families  that  separated  in  the  morning  scarcely  expected 
to  gather  together  in  the  evening;  and  when  retiring  to 
their  respective  beds  at  night  they  parted  from  each  other 
under  a  feeling  of  uncertainty  as  to  whether  they  should  all 
meet  in  the  morning. 

The  poor  heathen  Indians  beat  their  tomtoms,  and  walk- 
ed in  processions'  with  incense  and  garlands  to  propitiate 
their  idols,  and  avert  the  terrors  of  death.  The  Christians, 
besides  calling  upon  God  in  their  homes,  appointed  a  public 
fast  for  humiliation  and  solemn  prayer  to  the  Almighty  that 
the  plague  might  be  stayed. 

With  many,  antidotes  of  eagerly -hoped-for  efficacy  were 
carried  about  the  person.  Fires  were  kindled,  and  gums  or 
resins  burned  in  the  yards  or  at  the  corners  of  the  streets. 
Additional  burial-places  were  appointed  in  the  neighborhood 
of  Port  Louis,  and  every  means  adopted,  by  spreading  lime 
over  the  graves,  and  by  other  means,  to  prevent  the  increase 
of  the  pestilence ;  and  still  the  fearful  calamity  continued, 
less  violent,  indeed,  in  the  town,  but  more  fatal  in  the 
country. 

By  the  medical  men,  whose  labors  were  unremitted,  the 
disease  appeared  to  be  generally  regarded  as  infectious,  but 
not  contagious ;  yet  they  failed  to  discover  its  immediate 
cause,  and  had  no  specific  remedy.  Emetics  and  castor-oil 
were  most  successful  in  some  places ;  essence  of  camphor, 
or  dilute  sulphuric  acid,  in  others ;  and  cold-water  applica- 
tions, practiced  by  a  medical  gentleman  recently  from  India, 
promised  at  one  time  to  prove  effectual  in  arresting  the  dis- 
ease ;  but  this  also  subsequently  failed. 

Opinions  formed  d  priori  as  to  the  classes  most  likely  to 
be  affected  by  such  a  visitation  were  not  confirmed.  The 
Indians,  whose  abodes  are  small,  ill- ventilated,  crowded,  and 
not  remarkable  for  cleanliness,  and  whose  food  is  perhaps 
less  nutritive  than  that  of  most  others,  suffered  but  little. 
The  Chinese,  of  whom  there  are  great  numbers,  and  whose 


132  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  iv. 

mode  of  life  is  in  some  respects  similar,  were  scarcely  affect- 
ed, and  I  did  not  hear  of  more  than  one  death  among  them. 
The  classes  who  were  the  greatest  sufferers  were  the  more 
respectable  inhabitants,  English,  and  French,  and  the  Cre- 
oles. The  greatest  mortality  was  among  the  latter,  and 
quite  as  much  in  the  country  as  the  town. 

Throughout  this  anxious  period  my  own  health  had  been 
mercifully  preserved;  and  as  the  time  which  I  had  fixed 
for  proceeding  to  Madagascar  had  arrived,  and  as  Mr.  Wiehe' 
had  kindly  given  me  a  passage  on  board  one  of  his  vessels,. 
I  left  my  bereaved  and  anxious  friends,  and  embarked  on 
board  the  Nimble  on  the  8th  of  June.  The  vessel  had  been 
detained  a  day  longer  than  was  fixed  for  want  of  laborers 
to  take  off  water,  and  otherwise  to  fit  the  vessel  for  sea.  The 
last  person  I  took  leave  of  was  my  kind  friend  Mr.  Kelsey, 
to  whom  I  committed  the  care  of  my  letters,  with  many 
other  of  those  serious  charges  which  naturally  occur  to  the 
mind  on  undertaking  a  doubtful  or  dangerous  journey,  and 
which  I  felt  it  was  not  possible  to  commit  to  safer  hands. 
In  less  than  half  an  hour  after  leaving  his  office  our  vessel 
was  under  way.  One  of  our  sailors  was  attacked  with  chol- 
era on  the  voyage,  but  recovered  before  we  reached  the  port 
of  Tamatave. 


SECOND  VOYAGE  TO  MADAGASCAR.  133 


CHAPTER  V. 

Second  Voyage  to  Madagascar. — Quarantine  on  account  of  the  Cholera  at 
Mauritius. — Residence  on  Shore. — Visit  to  a  sick  Chief. — His  Secretary. 
— Presents  from  the  People. — Correspondence  with  the  Government  at 
the  Capital. — Hospitality  of  M.  Provint. — Evening  Walks. — Drawers  of 
Water. — Cattle-market.-»Mode  of  embarking  and  landing  Cattle. — Ar- 
ticles sold  in  the  daily  Market. — House  of  the  Son  of  the  Chief  Judge. — 
The  national  Festival  of  the  New  Year. — Presents. — Visitors  from  the 
Capital. — Annual  Festival  Dinner  by  the  Governor. — Dresses  of  the 
Company. — Eating  of  the  Jaka  preserved  since  the  last  annual  Festival. 
— Accounts  of  the  destructive  Progress  of  the  Cholera  at  Mauritius. — 
Death  of  Mr.  Kelsey. — Visit  to  the  Capital  prohibited  on  account  of  the 
Cholera  at  Mauritius. — Astonishment  of  the  Natives  on  witnessing  the 
Effects  of  Photography. — Remarkable  Countenances  of  many  of  the  Peo- 
ple.—  Application  for  Medicine. — Toothaches. — Varieties  of  native 
Medicine. — Poisonous  Fish. — Serpents. — Habits  of  the  Aye- Aye. 

THE  weather  was  fine,  the  wind  fair  for  our  voyage,  and 
the  sea  by  no  means  rough;  yet  again  I  suffered  much 
from  sea-sickness ;  happily  the  voyage  was  short,  and  on 
the  evening  of  the  third  day  we  were  within  ten  miles  of 
our  port,  and,  as  there  were  indications  of  a  change  of 
wind,  the  captain,  who  was  himself  an  invalid,  anchored 
for  the  night  in  twenty  fathoms  of  water.  The  next  morn- 
ing the  wind  was  contrary,  and  it  was  past  noon  on  the 
12th  of  June  before  we  entered  the  bay.  During  the  next 
day  the  custom-house  officers  came  on  board  to  inquire 
about  the  cholera  at  Mauritius,  and  to  examine  the  health 
of  the  crew.  They  informed  the  captain  that  until  farther 
orders  there  could  be  no  communication  with  the  shore,  a 
decision  which,  however  inconvenient  to  ourselves,  was 
highly  commendable  so  far  as  the  safety  of  the  people  was 
concerned. 


134  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  v. 

After  being  eight  days  in  quarantine  we  went  on  shore, 
and  as  soon  as  I  had  received  permission  to  land  my  things 
they  were  taken  to  the  custom-house  and  afterward  depos- 
ited in  a  large  new  house  belonging  to  M.  Provint,  which 
stood  in  a  healthy  part  of  the  settlement,  and  was  kindly 
granted  by  the  owner  for  my  use.  The  officers  at  the  cus- 
tom-house examined  my  things  very  carefully,  and  the 
number  of  bottles  containing  photographic  chemicals,  as 
well  as  a  small  case  of  medicine  included  in  my  luggage, 
induced  them  to  regard  me  as  a  doctor,  and  one  of  them 
asked  if  I  had  any  thing  to  cure  a  headache. 

On  the  following  day  I  took  possession  of  my  house  in 
Tamatave,  and  while  engaged  in  unpacking  and  arranging 
my  luggage,  a  messenger  came  from  a  neighboring  chief  to 
ask  for  some  medicine.  I  went  forthwith  to  see  him,  and 
then  sent  him  a  small  quantity  of  such  medicine  as  appear- 
ed to  me  most  suitable.  I  was  much  struck  with  the  novel 
aspect  of  social  life  which  my  visit  to  the  sick  chief  afford- 
ed. I  found  him  not  in  the  large  substantial  house,  with 
doors  and  windows,  matted  walls,  and  boarded  floor,  which 
he  usually  occupied,  but  in  a  low  hut  in  the  same  inclosure. 
This  I  entered  by  a  door- way  near  the  farthest  end.  After 
passing  through  the  outer  door- way  I  entered  a  room  about 
twenty  feet  long  and  twelve  feet  wide,  the  walls  being  about 
five  feet  high,  and  closed  all  round  without  window  or  door. 
About  the  centre  of  this  room  was  a  sort  of  raised  hearth 
edged  round  with  stones,  on  which  a  wood  fire  was  burning. 
The  room  was  dimly  lighted  by  a  lamp  of  native  structure 
fixed  in  the  sand  of  the  hearth.  The  lamp  itself  was  a  cu- 
riosity, consisting  of  an  iron  rod  two  or  three  feet  long, 
sharpened  to  a  point  at  one  end,  and  having  a  cup  with  a 
hook  above  it  at  the  other.  The  sharp  end  of  the  rod  was 
fixed  in  the  sand.  The  cup  contained  melted  fat.  In  this 
was  a  lighted  wick  of  twisted  cotton,  and  above  the  flame 
of  the  wick  a  piece  of  bullock's  fat  was  fixed  on  the  hook, 


CHAP.  v.  VISIT  TO  A  SICK  CHIEF.  135 

which,  as  it  melted  in  the  flame,  replenished  the  cup  be- 
low. 

I  found  the  chief  lying  on  a  number  of  mats  spread  by 
the  side  of  the  fire-place.  His  wife  was  sitting  near  the 
door- way  working  at  a  fine  kind  of  mat.  One  slave  was  in 
the  outer  room  driving  away  the  poultry  and  pigs  as  they 
approached,  and  another  little  slave-girl  squatting  on  the 
ground  attended  to  the  fire.  The  chief  said  he  had  removed 
to  this  low,  close  hut  for  the  sake  of  the  warmth :  the  ther- 
mometer at  that  time  was  generally  between  60°  and  70°  in- 
doors. He  was  an  officer  of  the  government,  and  while  I 
was  talking  with  him  one  of  his  assistants  or  aids-de-camp 
entered  with  a  couple  of  letters,  which,  at  the  chief's  re- 
quest, he  read,  and  which  the  chief  told  him  he  must  an- 
swer. The  young  man  then  went  to  a  box  at  the  side  of 
the  room,  brought  paper,  pen,  and  ink,  and,  seating  himself 
cross-legged  on  the  ground  near  the  lamp,  laid  a  quire  of 
paper  on  his  knee,  and  having  folded  a  sheet,  the  chief 
raised  himself  upon  his  mat  and  dictated  while  his  secretary 
wrote  a  reply.  When  the  letter  was  finished  the  secretary 
read  it  aloud,  and,  the  chief  having  approved,  the  writer 
brushed  the  sand  adhering  to  his  naked  foot  with  the  feath- 
ery end  of  his  long  pen  upon  the  freshly- written  sheet  to 
prevent  its  blotting,  then  folded  his  letter  and  departed  to 
dispatch  it  to  its  destination.  There  was  something  singu- 
larly novel  and  suggestive  as  to  the  processes  by  which  the 
civilization  of  nations  is  promoted  in  the  spectacle  I  had  wit- 
nessed. Little  more  than  thirty  years  before  the  language 
of  Madagascar  was  an  unwritten  language ;  a  native  who 
had  been  educated  at  Mauritius  was  the  only  writer  in  the 
country,  and  he  wrote  in  a  foreign  tongue ;  but  now,  with- 
out any  of  the  appliances  which  are  usually  connected  with 
a  secretary's  desk  or  office,,  a  quiet,  unpretending  young 
man,  seated  on  a  mat  on  the  floor  in  a  low,  dark  cottage 
three  hundred  miles  from  the  capital  of  the  country,  and 


136  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  v. 

with  his  paper  on  his  knee,  receives  and  writes  with  accu- 
racy and  ease  the  orders  or  instructions  of  his  superior ;  and 
while  the  latter  reclines  in  his  sickness  on  his  mats  spread 
on  the  floor  in  his  leaf-thatched  hut,  as  his  fathers  had  done 
for  generations  before,  he  has  only  to  utter  his  wishes  or  his 
orders,  and  these  are  conveyed  to  those  whom  they  concern 
with  as  much  authenticity  and  correctness  as  the  most 
formal  dispatch  from  an  office  of  the  most  civilized  nation. 
And  when  I  reflected  that  to  such  an  extent  had  the  native 
government  availed  itself  of  the  advantages  of  writing,  as 
that,  in  the  year  1836,  when  the  late  missionaries  left  the 
capital,  there  were  four  thousand  officers  employed,  who 
transacted  the  business  of  their  respective  departments  by 
writing,  and  that  such  is  the  benefit  or  pleasure  which  the 
people  find  in  thus  communicating  with  each  other  that 
scarcely  a  traveler  ever  journeys  from  one  place  to  another 
without  being  a  letter-carrier,  I  was  strongly  impressed  with 
the  fact  that,  besides  the  benefits  of  their  directly  religious 
teaching,  missionaries  were  rendering  most  important  aid 
toward  the  enlightenment  and  civilization  of  mankind. 

After  a  subsequent  visit,  I  sent  to  the  chief,  who  remain- 
ed an  invalid  for  some  time,  a  little  tea  and  sugar  and  a 
few  biscuits,  for  which  he  expressed  himself  thankful,  ob- 
serving that  he  had  but  little  appetite  and  did  not  relish  his 
food,  though  he  had  some  time  before  bought  a  first-rate 
cook,  for  whom  he  had  given  seventy  dollars,  about  £13 : 
but  that  she  was  ill  at  that  time,  and  he  was  consequently 
deprived  of  her  services. 

During  the  day  on  which  I  was  unpacking  my  luggage, 
several  young  men,  traders  from  the  capital,  came  to  my 
house  to  ask  what  new  articles  of  trade  I  had  brought,  and 
particularly  if  I  had  any  violins  or  musical  instruments  to 
sell.  Soon  afterward  a  man  arrived  with  a  turkey  and  a 
duck,  as  a  present  from  a  chief  living  close  by,  and  I  after- 
ward received  a  number  of  similar  presents  from  persons 


CHAP.  v.  LETTER  FROM  THE  GOVERNMENT.  137 

residing  in  the  neighborhood,  generally  accompanied  with 
friendly  salutations  and  expressions  of  welcome. 

As  I  had  not  yet  received  any  answer  to  the  letter  sent 
from  Mauritius  to  the  secretary  of  the  government,  I  wrote 
again,  informing  the  government  of  my  having  arrived  on 
the  coast,  and  asking  permission  to  proceed  to  the  capital. 
A  day  or  two  afterward  the  answer  arrived,  and  was  to  the 
effect  that,  as  Mr.  Cameron  and  I  had  applied  together  last 
year,  we  must  apply  together  now.  I  then  wrote  again, 
stating  that,  Mr.  Cameron  having  gone  to  the  Cape,  I  could 
not  confer  with  him ;  that  if  the  queen  wished  him  to  come, 
I  would  write  and  inform  him  of  her  majesty's  wishes ;  but 
that  as  I  was  there  I  again  solicited  permission  to  proceed, 
in  the  mean  time,  to  the  capital. 

M.  Provint,  the  friend  who  allowed  me  to  occupy  his 
house,  also  kindly  promised  to  send  me  a  cook  to  prepare 
such  meals  as  I  might  take  at  home,  and,  soon  after  this 
proposal  had  been  made,  a  short,  thick-set,  woolly -headed 
youth  arrived,  clothed  in  a  sort  of  frock  made  of  coarse  rofia 
cloth.  He  entered  the  room  where  I  was  sitting,  telling  me 
he  had  been  sent  to  be  my  cook,  and  exhibiting  a  large 
spoon  and  a  fork  which  he  held  in  his  hand,  the  emblems,  I 
supposed,  of  his  profession,  or  the  implements  of  his  craft. 
He  was  generally  sent  to  market  to  buy  what  was  wanted, 
and  proved  tolerably  well  acquainted  with  the  modes  of 
dressing  the  different  kinds  of  food  to  be  obtained  in  the 
place.  I  took  my  morning  meal  every  day  in  the  house  in 
which  I  resided,  and  this  generally  consisted  of  rice  with 
hashed  or  stewed  beef,  with  the  addition  of  eggs  and  tea,  for 
which  I  obtained  fresh  milk  every  morning,  part  of  which 
was  always  reserved  for  tea  in  the  evening. 

These  were  the  only  meals  I  took  at  home,  as  the  same 
kind  friend  who  had  sent  me  the  cook  invited  me  to  his  ta- 
ble, where  I  usually  shared  his  hospitality  at  dinner.  My 
walks  home  from  the  house  of  my  friend  on  the  dark  even- 


138  VISITS  TO  MAD AGASCAK.  CHAP.  r. 

ings  were  sometimes  enlivened  bj  two  or  three  slave-boys 
sent  with  me  with  a  lantern,  who  occasionally  amused  them- 
selves and  me  by  marching  on  before  me  to  the  rude  music 
of  a  jew's-harp  and  a  little  drum,  both  apparently  of  native 
manufacture.  I  was,  however,  more  frequently  gratified  in 
beholding  the  large  number  of  fire-flies  flitting  about  in 
great  numbers,  with  their  singularly -brilliant  greenish  sort 
of  light,  at  times  close  to  my  face,  and  then  among  the  ad- 
jacent paling  or  vegetation. 

My  house  was  so  situated  in  the  midst  of  the  settlement 
as  to  afford  frequent  opportunities  for  observing  some  of  the 
habits  and  usages  of  the  people  around  me.  Their  houses, 
with  several  others,  stood  in  a  large  inclosure,  part  of  which 
was  cultivated  as  a  garden.  In  the  front  was  a  well,  from 
which  many  of  the  houses  in  the  neighborhood  were  sup- 
plied with  water.  The  well  was  about  twenty  feet  deep, 
sunk  through  the  sand,  which  was  kept  up  by  boards  at  the 
sides.  The  water  was  drawn  up  in  a  large  bullock's  horn 
fastened  to  the  end  of  a  string  made  of  bark,  and  let  down 
by  the  hand  to  the  water.  Numbers  of  slave-girls  came 
every  morning  with  long  bamboo-canes  for  water.  These 
canes  were  six  or  eight  feet  long,  and,  the  partitions  at  the 
joints  inside  being  broken,  formed  cylinders  three  or  four 
inches  wide,  in  which  the  water  was  conveyed  from  the 
well  to  the  adjacent  houses.  This  water,  when  first  drawn, 
was  not  clear,  but  when  filtered  or  allowed  to  stand  was 
tolerably  good.  I  succeeded  in  obtaining  a  photograph  of 
the  end  of  my  house  and  the  yard  adjacent,  as  well  as  por- 
traits of  several  of  the  slaves  who  came  dairy  to  the  well 
for  water.  In  the  same  inclosure  other  slaves  might  often 
be  seen  pounding  rice  in  a  large  wooden  vessel  to  separate 
the  husk  from  the  grain. 

Many  of  the  natives  came  daily  to  my  house,  and  among 
them  some  young  chiefs  holding  subordinate  offices  in  the 
place,  who  asked  me  to  teach  them  English,  proposing  to 


CHAP.  v.  CATTLE-MAKKET.  141 

/ 

instruct  me  in  Malagasy  in  return,  an  agreement  into  which 
I  very  readily  entered.  Like  many  other  of  the  native 
youths,  they  were  fond  of  writing ;  and,  considering  that 
they  were  almost  entirely  self-taught,  they  wrote  remarka- 
bly well.  They  were  types  of  a  class  very  numerous  in 
the  island  at  the  present  time,  and  very  important — youths 
eager  after  instruction,  thirsting  for  information,  and  glad 
to  avail  themselves  of  every  means  within  reach  to  increase 
their  knowledge.  I  could  not  but  deeply  regret  that  no 
means  existed  for  opening  to  them  access  to  the  fountains  of 
knowledge  and  the  sources  of  improvement  which  schools 
and  books  would  supply. 

Soon  after  my  arrival  I  paid  one  or  two  visits  to  the  cat- 
tle-market, which  is  on  the  outside  of  the  village.  The 
stock  was  not  numerous,  and  the  kinds  such  as  with  us 
would  be  considered  neither  desirable  nor  profitable,  being 
large-boned,  large-headed,  and  not  very  well  covered  with 
flesh.  In  the  market  there  were  neither  sheep  nor  goats, 
though  both  may  be  seen  in  the  interior  of  the  country. 
The  cattle  are  all  of  the  buffalo  species,  having  the  hump 
between  the  shoulders ;  and  so  highly  is  this  part  of  the 
animal  esteemed,  and  so  averse  are  the  people  to  all  inno- 
vation, that  on  one  occasion,  when  some  animals  of  a  supe- 
rior breed  were  introduced  from  the  Cape,  the  inhabitants 
of  Tamatave,  where  they  were  landed,  would  not  allow  them 
to  be  turned  loose,  lest  their  own  cattle  should  be  deteriora- 
ted by  breeding  with  them. 

In  the  market  these  animals  stood  generally  in  small 
groups  of  three  or  four  together,  occasionally  a  cow  and  her 
calf,  or  even  a  single  cow.  The  traffic  among  the  natives 
themselves  did  not  appear  to  be  very  brisk.  The  cattle 
supplied  to  the  traders  for  exportation  are  sold  at  the  same 
place,  or  at  the  other  end  of  the  village  nearer  the  shipping. 
The  price  is  fixed  by  the  government  at  fifteen  dollars  a 
head,  besides  other  charges.  A  captain  of  a  vessel  states 


142  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  v. 

how  many  lie  requires,  one  hundred  or  one  hundred  and 
fifty,  more  or  less,  and  having  approved  of  a  lot,  ten  or 
twenty  more  than  he  requires  are  brought  together,  from 
the  whole  of  which  he  drives  out  the  worst,  and  having  re- 
duced the  herd  to  the  required  number,  these  are  driven 
into  a  sort  of  yard  or  fold  of  strong  posts  and  rails,  situated 
near  the  sea,  where  the  cattle  remain  ready  for  embarka- 
tion. The  getting  them  on  board  is  rather  a  noisy  and 
bustling  affair,  and  when  the  weather  is  at  all  rough  it  is 
impracticable  without  loss.  If  the  sea  is  tolerably  calm, 
the  vessels  approach  as  near  the  shore  as  possible,  perhaps 
within  two  hundred  yards,  and  a  strong  rope  is  passed  from 
the  ship  to  the  shore.  Two  large  canoes  are  then  fastened 
together  by  having  strong  bars  or  poles  tied  across  them, 
and  projecting  over  the  sides.  The  cattle,  which  have  per- 
haps never  been  tied  up  before,  are  caught  in  the  fold  by 
having  a  rope  passed  round  their  horns,  by  which  they  are 
tied  one  by  one  to  a  strong  post  in  the  fold.  To  the  rope 
round  each  animal's  head  two  other  ropes  are  fastened,  viz., 
one  on  each  side,  and  extending  in  opposite  directions  along 
the  sea-beach.  Each  of  these  ropes  is  held  by  eight  or  ten 
men  standing  on  the  sand,  or  in  the  water.  "When  all  is 
ready  the  animal  is  driven  out  of  the  fold,  and  generally 
runs  at  the  men  on  one  side,  but  is  held  back  by  those  on 
the  other  side,  and  both  parties  of  men  keep  advancing  to- 
ward deep  water,  still  pulling  with  the  ropes,  until  the  bul- 
lock is  beyond  his  depth.  He  is  then  drawn  as  he  swims 
to  the  side  of  the  canoe,  where  the  long  ropes  are  taken  off, 
and  he  is  fastened  by  the  horns  to  the  cross-bars  projecting 
over  the  sides  of  the  canoe.  When  about  ten  oxen  are 
thus  fastened,  the  canoes  are  drawn  by  means  of  a  rope  pre- 
viously fixed  to  the  ship,  the  bullocks  being  swung  on  both 
sides ;  a  sort  of  canvas  sling  is  then  passed  under  the  body 
of  each  animal,  and  they  are  hoisted  into  the  ship.  In  this 
manner  a  hundred  and  fifty  bullocks  will  sometimes  be  em- 


GROVE  OF   PANDANUB-TREEB  AND  CATTLE-PEN    NEAB  TAMATAVE, 


CHAP.  v.  MODE  OF  EMBAEKING  CATTLE.  145 

barked  in  one  day.  Hay  and  water  are  provided  for  them 
during  the  passage,  and  if  the  sea  is  tolerably  smooth,  in  a 
day  or  two  they  begin  to  eat.  They  are  under  the  charge 
of  native  herdsmen  called  marmites ;  and  unless  the  pas- 
sage is  very  long,  extending  to  twenty  days  or  more,  or  the 
weather  very  tempestuous,  few  of  them  die.  The  fact  of 
the  prevailing  winds  being  contrary  during  the  greater  part 
of  the  trading  season  seems  to  indicate  the  great  advantage 
that  would  be  secured  in  the  employment  of  steam  in  the 
exportation  of  cattle  from  Madagascar. 

On  reaching  Mauritius  the  ships  with  cattle  approach  as 
near  as  possible  to  the  shore.  The  bullocks  are  then  hoisted 
up  by  slings  swung  over  the  ship's  side,  and  allowed  to  fall 
into  the  water,  where  the  rope  is  taken  from  their  heads, 
and  they  are  left  to  swim  between  two  lines  of  spars  to  the 
shore,  where  some  tame  cattle  and  hay  are  placed  to  attract 
them  to  the  landing-place.'  By  this  process  many  cargoes, 
ranging  from  ninety  to  a  hundred  and  fifty  bullocks  each, 
are  brought  to  Mauritius  every  year,  that  island,  as  well  as 
Bourbon,  being  entirely  dependent  upon  Madagascar  for 
cattle  for  draught  as  well  as  for  the  market. 

Soon  after  I  became  a  housekeeper  in  Madagascar,  I  vis- 
ited the  general  market  held  daily  at  Tamatave.  The  place 
where  it  is  kept  is  about  fifty  yards  square,  and  extremely 
dirty,  in  consequence  of  the  refuse  of  vegetables  and  meat 
lying  about.  The  market  opens  early  in  the  morning. 
Among  the  fruits  were  citrons,  lemons,  and  oranges,  pine- 
apples, plantains,  and  pistache-nuts.  Among  the  roots  ma- 
nioc was  most  abundant.  Eice  was  very  plentiful  and  of 
varied  quality.  There  were  also  maize,  millet,  and  other 
grains.  The  chief  article  of  manufacture  was  foreign  cot- 
ton cloth,  white  and  printed.  The  native  manufactures 
comprised  knives,  hatchets,  axes,  hoes,  spades,  files,  nails, 
scales  and  weights,  native  cloth,  lambas,  mats,  baskets,  and 
hats  of  plaited  straw,  etc.  Most  of  the  articles  were  spread 

K  • 


146  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  v. 

upon  the  ground,  some  on  a  little  sort  of  raised  platform  of 
earth  or  sand,  the  sides  of  which  were  edged  in  a  remarka- 
ble manner  with  the  shoulder-bones  of  oxen  stuck  in  the 
ground,  the  broad  part  upward.  The  venders  sometimes 
sat  in  the  centre  of  the  platform  and  sometimes  by  the  side. 
The  butchers  were  busy  cutting  up  the  meat,  which  was 
spread  upon  the  ground  on  broad  plantain  or  other  leaves. 
It  was  sold  in  pieces,  not  by  weight. 

Mixed  up  with  these  articles  were  all  kinds  of  poultry, 
including  guinea-fowls,  which  are  native,  and  turkeys,  which 
have  been  introduced.  In  one  place  there  were  different 
kinds  of  black  or  brown  parrots ;  and  in  another  a  man  was 
very  anxious  to  persuade  me  to  buy  three  young  tenrecs, 
apparently  the  spiny  tenrec,  which  he  had  in  a  cage.  A 
large  black  and  white  lemur,  the  ruffed  lemur,  a  splendid 
animal,  quite  tame,  was  very  attractively  exhibited.  I  ob- 
served various  kinds  of  salt,  also  tobacco  in  leaf  and  manu- 
factured, as  well  as  snuff  in  abundance ;  snuff-boxes  or  to- 
bacco-boxes made  of  small  pieces  of  polished  cane,  and  a 
sort  of  perfume  resembling  ointment.  1 1  went  into  several 
of  the  houses,  where  numbers  of  lambas,  or  native  scarfs,  of 
varied  pattern  and  quality  were  for  sale.  The  patterns  of 
some  of  the  native  fabrics- were  both  tasteful  and  attractive. 

The  money  changers  were  busy  cutting  up  dollars,  and 
half  and  quarter  dollars,  and  smaller  pieces,  cut  silver,  val- 
ued by  weight,  being  the  universal  currency.  They  cut 
the  dollar  up  by  laying  it  on  a  block,  placing  a  large  knife 
upon  it,  and  striking  the  knife  with  a  hammer.  This  proc- 
ess was  carried  on  at  the  threshold  of  the  doors  in  the  mar- 
ket. 

The  greatest  drawback  to  the  interest  which  the  novel 
spectacle  of  a  market  in  Madagascar  presented,  was  the 
great  number  of  huts  in  which  a  barrel  of  arrak,  a  fiery 
kind  of  rum  made  in  the  island,  was  placed  for  sale.  There 
was  generally  a  tap  in  the  end  of  the  barrel,  and  one  or 


CHAP.  v.          THE  FESTIVAL  OF  THE  NEW  YEAR.  147 

two  men  were  constantly  inviting  customers.  JSTo  law  of 
Radama's  was  more  salutary  than  that  which  prohibited 
the  making  or  selling  of  ardent  spirits.  Many  of  the  peo- 
ple whom  I  saw  appeared  to  be  under  the  influence  of  this 
liquor. 

On  my  way  home  I  called  on  Filiberg,  the  son  of  the  late 
chief  judge  of  the  district.  The  house  in  which  he  lives  is 
quite  a  mansion.  It  seems  as  if  it  might  belong  to  the  na- 
tive aristocracy,  and  speaks  well  for  the  rank  maintained 
by  the  former  chiefs  of  the  place.  This  house,  which  has 
two  stories  and  a  number  of  rooms  tolerably  well  furnish- 
ed, stands  in  a  compound  or  inclosure  fifty  or  a  hundred 
yards  square,  formed  with  posts  from  six  to  nine  inches  in 
diameter,  and  about  fifteen  feet  high,  planted  in  the  ground 
close  together.  A  lodge  stands  at  the  gate  of  the  inclosure, 
and  a  broad  path,  bordered  with  tall  mango-trees,  leads  to 
the  house.  Around  the  house,  and  within  the  inclosure, 
are  a  number  of  small  huts  or  houses  well  and  neatly  built, 
which  are  the  dwellings  of  the  chief's  attendants  and  serv- 
ants, forming  a  sort  of  embryo  village  round  his  mansion. 
The  servant  or  porter  whom  we  saw  at  the  lodge,  a  smart 
young  man  with  an  enormous  pair  of  gold  earrings,  having 
informed  the  chief  that  I  was  waiting,  came  back  to  lead  us 
to  the  house.  On  entering  I  was  cordially  welcomed  by 
the  young  chief  and  his  half-brother,  who  were  surrounded 
by  their  attendants ;  while  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  large 
room  about  twenty  females  were  sitting  on  mats  spread 
upon  the  boarded  floor,  as  if  expecting  company.  After  a 
short  conversation  respecting  England  and  Mauritius,  I 
took  my  leave,  as  other  guests  had  arrived. 

The  24th  of  June  was  the  last  day  of  the  Malagasy  year, 
and  on  that  day  the  observances  connected  with  the  great 
annual  festival  in  commemoration  of  the  New  Year  com- 
menced, and  all  kinds  of  work  were  interdicted  for  three 
days.  In  the  afternoon,  as  I  was  walking  on  the  plain  to 


148  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  v. 

the  northward  of  the  village,  I  saw  a  number  of  chiefs 
passing  along,  each  reclining  in  an  open  palanquin  borne 
on  men's  shoulders,  and  surrounded  by  a  large  retinue  of 
attendants.  One  or  two  men  with  assagais,  or  spears,  in 
their  hands  ran  along  in  front  shouting  out  the  name  of 
the  chief;  then  followed  the  bearers  of  the  palanquin  with 
a  number  of  persons  on  each  side,  many  of  them  carrying 
spears,  sticks,  or  fans,  while  relays  of  bearers  and  others  fol- 
lowed. All  moved  along  at  a  quick,  trotting  sort  of  pace, 
causing  a  good  deal  of  dust  as  well  as  noise  on  the  road.  I 
recognized  among  them  the  son  of  the  chief  judge,  and  the 
Chief  of  Hivondro.  On  inquiring,  I  found  they  were  going 
to  the  residence  of  the  governor,  to  present  their  homage 
to  the  sovereign's  representative,  according  to  the  custom 
of  the  country  at  this  season. 

In  different  parts  of  the  village  I  passed  great  numbers 
of  the  people  in  holiday  costume.  The  hair  of  the  women, 
which  is  jet  black  and  glossy,  was  in  some  cases  elaborately 
dressed,  and  arranged  in  a  number  of  small  braids  and  knots, 
giving  a  stiff  and  formal  aspect  to  the  contour  of  the  head 
and  fa'ce.  The  greater  portion  of  the  people  were  clothed 
more  or  less  in  articles  of  European  manufacture,  the  men 
in  white  lambas,  or  large  flowing  scarfs,  the  women  in  col- 
ored cotton  dresses.  They  seemed  to  be  generally  in  family 
groups ;  and  I  found  on  inquiry  tjiat  the  day  was  devoted 
to  the  interchange  of  visits  among  relatives  and  friends. 

Later  in  the  evening,  as  I  returned  home,  I  saw  numbers 
of  persons  bathing  or  washing  themselves  in  different  parts 
of  the  village.  Parents  especially  were  bathing  their  chil- 
dren outside  their  houses,  or  near  the  doors.  I  had  seen 
through  the  day  slaves  bringing  in  fire-wood ;  and  toward 
evening  small  fires  were  kindled  in  every  direction  outside 
of  the  houses.  Both  the  bathing  and  the  lighting  of  fires 
are  necessary  parts  of  the  usages  connected  with  this  great 
annual  festival.  These  ceremonies  are  commenced  bv  the 


CHAP.  v.  VISITORS  FROM  THE  CAPITAL.  149 

sovereign  at  the  capital,  and  followed  by  the  people  through- 
out the  country. 

Early  the  next  morning  a  messenger,  followed  by  a  slave, 
entered  my  house  and  presented  me  with  a  large  shoulder 
of  beef,  as  a  present  from  the  son-in-law  of  my  host.  Soon 
after  another  messenger  entered,  followed  by  two  slaves, 
one  of  them  bearing  the  hinder  leg  of  a  bullock,  with  the 
skin  and  hair  on,  as  a  New  Year's  present.  About  a  quar- 
ter of  an  hour  after  this,  an  aid-de-camp  of  the  captain  of 
the  port  arrived,  followed  by  a  slave  bearing  a  choice  piece 
of  beef  as  a  present  from  his  master,  and  shortly  afterward 
the  same  young  man  came  again,  followed  by  his  servant 
with  an  excellent  piece  from  himself.  The  supply  was  far 
beyond  my  wants,  but  it  was  intended  by  the  donors  as  an 
expression  of  respect,  and  to  my  servant,  who  found  a  great 
number  of  relations  here,  and  the  slaves  living  on  the  prem- 
ises, with  others  in  the  immediate  neighborhood,  it  was,  I 
have  no  doubt,  very  .acceptable. 

My  house  was  thronged  with  visitors  during  the  whole  of 
the  day,  and  as  there  was  one  among  them  who  could  speak 
a  little  English,  having  formerly  been  a  pupil  for  a  consid- 
erable time  in  one  of  the  best  of  the  schools  at  the  capital,  I 
not  only  received  much  interesting  intelligence,  but  was  able 
to  communicate  important  information  to  the  friends  who 
came,  and  remained,  some  of  them,  until  a  very  late  hour. 
Many  of  these  were  exceedingly  delighted  and  deeply  af- 
fected in  looking  over  some  of  the  illustrated  English  books 
which  I  had  with  me,  and  often  expressed  their  earnest 
wishes  to  be  able  to  read  English.  I  encouraged  them  to 
try,  but  they  shook  their  heads,  and  seemed  to  think  it  hope- 
less, especially  as  they  had  no  books. 

The  following  day  a  chief  residing  in  the  neighborhood 
came  to  me,  bringing  with  him  his  son,  a  fine  intelligent 
youth  about  sixteen  years  of  age,  who,  he  said,  knew  a  little 
English,  and  wished  to  learn  more.  I  was  glad  to  see  him 


150  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  v. 

and  another  young  chief  who  accompanied  him,  and  had 
recently  arrived  from  the  capital.  He  was  aid-de-camp  to 
the  prince  royal,  and  seemed  unusually  intelligent.  I  lent 
the  youth  an  English  and  Malagasy  book,  which  he  asked 
permission  to  copy  out  as  a  means  of  learning,  and  I  spent 
some  tune  in  teaching  him  the  pronunciation  of  English 
words.  His  companion  was  deeply  interested  in  some  books 
lying  on  my  table,  and  with  many  others  remained  the  great- 
er part  of  the  day  at  my  house.  Visits  such  as  these  were 
opportunities  for  doing  good  of  which  I  very  gladly  availed 
myself,  and  they  occurred  often. 

A  tall  noble-looking  chief  also  arrived,  accompanied  by 
a  number  of  strangers  who  had  recently  come  from  the  cap- 
ital and  had  brought  letters  from  residents  there  conveying 
much  interesting  intelligence.  "When  my  visitors  wrote 
down  on  paper  what  they  had  to  say,  I  could  generally,  by 
reference  to  the  dictionary  for  a  word  or  two,  understand 
what  it  meant.  I  then  wrote  my  reply,  and,  when  at  a  loss, 
my  servant,  a  Malagasy  from  Mauritius,  acted  as  interpret- 
er. Four  or  five  of  my  visitors,  when  they  left  me,  wrote  on 
a  sheet  of  paper,  which  at  the  time  was  lying  on  my  desk, 
their  cordial  and  affectionate  salutations.  This  was  the  com- 
mencement of  many  agreeable  and  instructive  interviews 
with  my  tall  friend  and  his  companions,  who  had  but  re- 
cently arrived  at  Tamatave,  where  they  remained  till  I  had 
left  the  island. 

About  a  week  after  the  commencement  of  the  observ- 
ances connected  with  the  New  Year  I  received  an  invita- 
tion from  the  governor  to  a  public  dinner,  which  was  to  be 
given  by  order  of  the  queen  to  the  residents  and  others  on 
the  occasion  of  the  national  festival.  The  dinner  was  given 
at  the  house  of  the  son  of  the  chief  judge,  as  being  central 
and  convenient.  At  the  tune  appointed,  the  chief  judge  and 
other  officers  of  the  government,  borne  in  palanquins  and 
attended  by  a  guard  of  honor  and  a  native  band,  arrived  «,t 


DlJKA,  A    B3T8IMA8AP.AKA  1IUVA    FAKMEB. 

BEARER. 


1IOVA   OFFICER  IN    SILK  HOVA   OFFICER   IN   COTTON 

LAMBA.  LAMBA.      TALL   FBIF.ND  MENTIONKD 

P.   150. 


CHAP.  v.  ANNUAL  FESTIVAL  DINNER.  153 

the  place  of  meeting.  At  half-past  five  the  residents  were 
summoned  to  the  banquet.  Two  lines  of  soldiers,  wearing 
a  folded  white  cloth  round  the  loins  and  white  belts  across 
their  naked  shoulders,  and  armed  with  a  musket  or  spear, 
lined  the  avenue  of  trees  leading  to  the  house.  As  we  en- 
tered the  court-yard,  the  band,  which  consisted  chiefly  of 
drums  and  clarionets,  began  to  play ;  and  when  we  reached 
the  door  the  second  officer  in  command,  the  governor's  rep- 
resentative on  this  occasion,  and  designated  a  marshal,  came 
out  to  meet  us  accompanied  by  the  other  officers,  by  all  of 
whom  we  were  cordially  welcomed. 

"While  we  were  waiting  I  found  sufficient  to  interest  me 
in  observing  the  singular  variety  among  the  uniforms  of  the 
officers.  They  seemed  as  if  they  might  have  belonged  to 
the  different  services  of  various  nations.  I  did  not,  howev- 
er, notice  any  naval  uniform ;  the  greater  part  were  English 
or  scarlet.  On  the  buttons  of  one  of  the  coats  I  observed 
the  American  eagle  and  shield.  Uniforms  appeared  to  be 
held  in  high  estimation,  for,  on  another  occasion,  I  was  in- 
formed that  an  officer  of  the  place  had  given  a  hundred  oxen 
for  his  suit.  One  of  the  officers  present  wore  a  rich  green 
velvet  coat  thickly  ornamented  with  gold  lace,  and  a  large 
aiguillette  of  gold  cord  on  the  shoulders.  All  the  chief 
officers  had  gold  epaulets  and  cocked  hats  with  feathers. 

On  proceeding  to  the  dinner-table  the  places  of  the  guests 
were  indicated  by  their  names  being  written  on  pieces  of 
paper  and  placed  on  the  table-napkins ;  and  I  soon  found 
myself  seated  between  the  lady  of  the  house,  the  wife  of  the 
judge's  son,  and  the  marshal.  Next  to  him  was  an  officer 
who  spoke  English,  though  but  imperfectly.  The  officer  in 
the  green  uniform  sat  opposite  to  me,  and,  as  he  spoke 
French  tolerably  well,  I  did  not  find  myself  so  much  at  a 
loss  as  I  had  anticipated. 

The  dinner  was  well  served  and  abundant,  comprising 
soup,  turkey,  roast  pig,  fowls,  ducks,  etc.,  with  some  good 


154  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  v. 

pastry,  all  set  out  and  served  in  respectable  French  or  En- 
glish dishes,  plates,  etc.  But  the  chief  novelty  was  a  dish 
of  jaka,  which  occupied  the  middle  of  the  table.  Jaka  is 
beef  which  has  been  preserved  from  the  previous  year's 
festival,  and  to  exchange  visits  and  eat  each  other's  jaka  is 
considered  by  the  people  as  the  greatest  mark  of  amity  in 
their  power  to  give.  The  jaka,  or  preserved  beef,  was  cut 
into  small  shreds,  and  seemed  to  have  been  fried  crisp  and 
brown.  . 

When  all  were  seated,  the  marshal  rose  and  made  a 
speech  in  praise  of  the  sovereign,  and  stating  that  it  was 
the  wish  of  the  queen  that  the  foreigners  should  partake 
with  her  officers  in  the  hospitalities  of  the  season  ;  that  the 
governor  regretted  that  illness  prevented  his  being  present, 
but  that  he  (the  speaker)  was,  on  the  governor's  behalf,  hap- 
py to  welcome  the  company  as  guests.  The  dish  of  jaka 
was  then  handed  round,  each  person  taking  a  small  piece  in 
his  fingers,  and  eating  it  silently  and  slowly.  It  seemed  to 
me  as  if  some  of  the  native  religious  feelings  were  associat- 
ed with  this  part  of  the  feast.  I  took  a  small  piece,  but  did 
not  perceive  in  it  any  peculiar  flavor,  certainly  nothing  to 
indicate  that  it  had  been  kept  twelve  months  without  salt. 

The  company  amounted  to  more  than  twenty,  and  the 
greatest  propriety,  with  much  cheerful  hilarity,  prevailed. 
Six  female  slaves  stood  behind  the  two  ladies  who  sat  at 
the  head  of  the  table,  and  one  or  two  aids-de-camp  behind 
the  chairs  of  each  of  the  officers.  Indeed,  there  seemed  to 
be  rather  too  many  attendants,  but  they  managed  remark- 
ably well.  When  the  dinner  was  nearly  over,  two  slave 
women  entered,  and,  sitting  down  on  the  ground  by  the 
side  of  their  mistress,  prepared,  under  her  direction,  coffee 
for  the  company,  which  was  served  soon  after  dinner. 

After  coffee  the  company  adjourned  to  a  large  adjoining 
room,  the  walls  of  which  were  covered  with  French  paper, 
representing  scenes  in  the  different  campaigns  of  Napoleon. 


CHAP.  r.  CHOLERA  AT  MAURITIUS.  155 

Here  I  had  the  opportunity  of  conversing  with  several  of 
the  officers  who  spoke  English  or  French,  and  whom  I  had 
previously  seen  at  my  house.  Music,  consisting  of  a  clari- 
onet and  drum,  with  other  amusements,  were  now  intro- 
duced, and  dancing  followed.  At  an  early  hour  the  mar- 
shal made  another  speech  in  the  name  of  the  queen,  after 
which  her  majesty's  health  was  drunk  in  a  small  glass  of 
liquor;  when  the  marshal  rose  to  retire,  and  was  followed 
by  the  rest  of  the  company.  In  the  front  court .  he  gave 
me  a  cordial  farewell  salutation,  and,  entering  his  palan- 
quin, was  borne  away,  followed  by  the  other  officers.  I 
reached  home  about  nine  o'clock,  and,  after  a  cup  of  tea, 
retired  to  rest,  much  interested  in  the  novel  scene  I  had 
witnessed. 

On  the  succeeding  day  I  received  a  packet  of  newspa- 
pers and  letters  from  Mauritius,  conveying  the  mournful 
intelligence  of  the  continued  ravages  of  the  cholera  there. 
In  these  accounts  it  was  estimated  that  upward  of  3000  per- 
sons had  been  carried  off  in  Port  Louis  alone,  while  the  dis- 
ease was  still  -extending  with  fearful  severity  in  some  of 
the  provinces.  My  grief  was  extreme  on  learning  that  Mrs. 
Kelsey,  to  whom  I  had  written  a  letter  of  condolence  by 
the  last  ship,  had  followed  her  honored  husband  to  the 
grave  within  a  few  days  of  his  interment  and  that  of  her 
two  beloved  children.  Their  family,  from  the  time  of  my 
arrival,  had  appeared  one  of  the  healthiest  and  happiest  in 
the  place.  They  had  been  among  my  most  attached  friends 
there.  To  Mr.  Kelsey  I  had  confided  the  transmission  of 
my  letters  to  and  from  England,  with  all  the  little  matters 
connected  with  my  own  comfort  and  safety ;  and  I  felt 
deeply  bound  to  him  by  ties  stronger  than  these  of  mere 
acquaintanceship.  No  symptom  of  indisposition  was  ob- 
servable when  I  left,  and  now  I  learned  that,  within  a  fort- 
night after  my  departure,  father,  mother,  and  two  dear  chil- 
dren were  numbered  with  the  dead.  Mr.  Banks,  the  pious 


156  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  v. 

and  devoted  military  chaplain,  with  many  others  whom  I 
knew,  had  been  swept  away  by  the  fearful  visitation,  and 
mourning  and  desolation  seemed  to  fill' the  land. 

The  next  morning  officers  from  the  governor  came  to  say 
that  accounts  of  the  fearful  ravages  of  the  cholera  at  Mau- 
ritius, at  the  time  when  I  left,  had  been  sent  from  Tama- 
tave  to  the  capital.     That,  on  that  account,  I  could  not  go 
up  to  Antananarivo,  and  that  nothing  which  had  come  from 
Mauritius  was  to  be  taken  to  the  capital.     So  great  was  the 
alarm  created  by  the  representations  given  of  the  virulent 
and  fatal  nature  of  this  disease,  that  the  system  of  relays  of 
messengers  organized  by  the  government  was  employed, 
and  the  message  from  the  capital  was  delivered  in  five  days 
afterward  in  Tamatave,  though  the  distance  by  the  ordinary 
route  is  three  hundred  miles.     Indeed,  so  determined  was 
the  government  to  prevent,  if  possible,  the  introduction  of 
this  dreaded  scourge,  that  a  proclamation  was  issued  the 
following  day  ordering  that  all  articles  of  trade  which  had 
been  landed  from  the  ships  should  be  exposed  to  the  sun 
and  wind  for  the  space  of  forty  days ;  that  all  the  dollars 
received  in  payment  for  the  cargoes  of  bullocks  which  had 
been  sold  should  be  buried  in  the  sand  forty  days,  in  order 
to  secure  the  removal  of  any  contagion  which  might  attach 
to  them ;  and  that  all  vessels  arriving  at  any  port  of  Mada- 
gascar, from  whatever  part  of  the  world  they  might  come, 
should  be  put  into  quarantine  for  the  same  period.     A  ves- 
sel soon  afterward  came  in  from  the  Sechelles,  but  was 
obliged  to  leave  without  supplies  before  the  time  of  quaran- 
tine had  expired ;  and  another  vessel  from  the  Cape,  with 
horses  on  board,  was  subject  to  the  same  restrictions. 

Under  these  circumstances  I  had  little  reason  to  expect 
any  change  in  the  decision  of  the  government,  although  I 
had  been  exempt  from  all  symptoms  of  the  disease.  I  felt 
that  the  chief  object  of  my  visit  was  deferred,  if  not  alto- 
gether frustrated,  by  these  regulations.  While,  therefore, 


CHAP.  v.  ASTONISHMENT  PRODUCED  BY  PHOTOGRAPHS.  157 

I  deeply  regretted  the  extreme  measures  which  the  govern- 
ment had  been  induced  to  take,  it  only  remained  for  me, 
after  repeated  conference  with  the  officers  of  the  place,  to 
obtain  all  the  information  within  my  reach  during  the  rest 
of  the  time  that  it  would  be  safe,  with  regard  to  health,  to 
remain  on  the  island. 

The  natives  still  continued  to  resort  to  my  residence  in 
considerable  numbers.  Frequently,  as  soon  as  the  door 
was  opened  after  daybreak  in  the  morning,  three  or  four 
men  would  be  waiting  for  my  coming  out  to  them,  while 
others  who  came  in  the  evening  generally  remained  until  a 
late  hour  of  the  night.  Some  came  to  see  whatever  might 
be  new ;  others  came  to  talk  or  hear ;  more  came  to  apply 
for  medicine ;  and  numbers  to  look  at  the  books  and  pic- 
tures that  were  generally  lying  on  my  table.  An  English 
work  on  Madagascar  excited  much  interest  from  the  pic- 
tures it  contained  of  persons  or  places  in  their  own  country, 
especially  an  oil-colored  portrait  of  the  chief  of  an  adjacent 
district,  who  had  been  personally  known  to  some  of  my 
visitors.  To  these  objects  of  curiosity  a  still  greater  attrac- 
tion was  added  in  my  photographic  apparatus.  When  first 
opened  at  the  custom-house  it  had  excited  considerable  no- 
tice and  some  inquiry ;  but  when,  after  making  the  neces- 
sary arrangements  in  my  house,  I  fixed  my  camera  on  the 
stand,  and  then  took  it  out  of  doors  for  the  purpose  of  ad- 
justing the  focus,  etc.,  the  people  on  the  premises  at  the 
time,  and  those  who  were  passing  by,  gathered  round  in  a 
state  of  considerable  excitement  and  expectation. 

When  I  had  adjusted  the  focus,  I  told  them  that  the  in- 
strument was  used  for  taking  people's  likenesses  in  a  minute 
or  two  by  means  of  the  sun  or  the  light.  When  they  look- 
ed and  saw  the  accuracy  of  the  figure,  with  all  the  minute 
detail  of  the  features  of  the  persons  standing  before  the 
instrument,  as  shown  on  the  ground  glass,  they  appeared 
extremely  delighted,  and  several  of  them,  after  having 


158  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  v. 

gratified  themselves  by  gazing  at  their  companions,  who 
very  readily  took  their  places  for  that  purpose,  asked  if  I 
would  take  their  likenesses  also.  On  my  intimating- a  will- 
ingness to  do  so,  one  chief  hurried  off  unperceived,  and  in 
a  short  time  returned,  warm  with  the  haste  of  his  walking, 
and  followed  by  a  slave  bearing  a  bundle  of  considerable 
size.  On  my  asking  what  he  had  brought,  he  took  out  a 
handsome  scarlet  lamba  and  other  attractive  articles  of 
dress,  saying  that  he  wished  to  be  dressed  in  these  before 
having  his  likeness  taken.  I  told  him  I  could  take  no 
likenesses  that  day,  as  I  was  only  putting  the  instrument 
together.  He  appeared  somewhat  disappointed,  also,  when 
I  told  him  that  I  could  not  take  the  scarlet  color  of  the 
lamba  with  the  instrument,  but  only  the  form  of  the  features 
and  dress  in  dark  and  light,  similar  to  the  specimens  I 
exhibited  of  pictures  previously  taken  elsewhere.  All  ex- 
pressed themselves  willing  to  wait,  but  few  left  without 
soliciting  a  promise  that  when  all  was  ready  their  portraits 
should  be  taken. 

They  did  not  allow  me  to  forget  this  promise,  and  as 
soon  as  I  had  prepared  the  chemicals,  a  chief  who  lived 
near,  and  one  or  two  of  his  aids-de-camp,  came  with  a 
number  of  attendants,  and,  having  sat  before  the  camera, 
seemed  rather  puzzled  to  understand  how  a  likeness  similar 
to  those  I  had  shown  could  result  from  the  collodion  nega- 
tive in  the  glass.  Two  or  three  others  sat  afterward,  and 
when  they  left  I  thought  appeared  rather  doubtful  as  to 
the  ultimate  issue.  A  day  or  two  afterward  I  printed  off 
some  positive  proofs  on  paper ;  and  when  these  were  fixed 
and  shown  to  them  they  were  equally  astonished  and  de- 
lighted. Many  ran  to  fetch  their  relatives  and  friends  to 
come  and  see  the  likenesses  taken  by  the  sun ;  and  long 
and  earnest  were  the  comments  and  questionings  about 
how  it  could  be  done.  One  man  said  it  was  zanahary — a 
word  they  sometimes  use  for  God,  by  which  they  probably 
meant  wonderful  or  supernatural. 


CHAP.  v.  PHOTOGRAPHS.  159 

After  this,  few  days  passed  in  which  persons  did  not 
come,  often  in  companies,  from  the  neighborhood,  to  see 
the  likenesses  taken  or  to  ask  for  their  own-;  and,  so  far  as 
my  chemicals  would  allow,  I  was  willing  to  gratify  them, 
as  it  gave  them  pleasure  and  afforded  me  opportunities  for 
intercourse  with  many  to  whom  I  might  not  otherwise  so 
easily  have  gained  access.  By  this  means  I  had  long  and 
interesting  conversations  with  the  chiefs  residing  in  the 
place,  as  well  as  with  strangers  from  a  distance,  including 
a  number  belonging  to  the  capital.  In  this  manner,  also,  I 
obtained  correct  likenesses  of  a  considerable  number  of  the 
people  of  all  classes,  from  the  aid-de-camp  of  the  governor 
to  the  slave  who  came  for  water  to  the  fountain  in  the 
yard.  I  met  with  difficulties  in  the  process  similar  to  those 
I  had  experienced  in  Mauritius,  arising  from  the  state  of 
the  atmosphere  and  the  quality  of  the  light,  so  different  to 
that  in  England;  and  also,  I  believe,  from  the  deteriora- 
tion or  original  impurity  of  some  of  my  chemicals.  When 
the  likenesses  were  taken,  frames  were  in  great  demand ; 
and  some  brought  large  pieces  of  glass  to  be  cut  to  the 
proper  dimensions;  others  proposed  rubbing  the  quick- 
silver from  the  back  of  looking-glasses ;  but  most  were  sat- 
isfied with  having  the  likeness  mounted  on  a  sheet  of  white 
paper. 

Besides  the  collodion  portraits,  I  obtained  a  number  of 
interesting  views  of  natural  objects  and  scenery  with  wax- 
paper,  most  of  which  I  succeeded  in  bringing  home  as  illus- 
trations of  the  rich  and  novel  forms  of  vegetation,  as  well 
as  the  general  beauty  of  the  country.  One  or  two  views 
of  forest  scenery,  in  which  the  large  trees  are  covered  with 
orchidaceous  and  other  plants,  some  of  them  in  full  blos- 
som, are  remarkably  striking. 

What  effect  colored  landscapes,  or  other  views  of  natural 
objects,  might  produce  upon  the  natives,  I  am  unable  to 
say ;  but  it  was  curious  to  notice  the  intense  interest  ex- 


160  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAE.  CHAP.  v. 

cited  by  the  portraits,  and  the  different  effect  produced  by 
the  view  of  a  group  of  trees,  or  flowers,  a  house,  or  any 
other  inanimate  object.  In  the  former,  the  features,  the  as- 
pect, the  dress,  the  ornaments,  and  all  the  little  accompani- 
ments, were  subjects  of  curious  examination  and  animated 
remark  by  wives  and  children,  as  well  as  companions  or 
friends.  One  man  had  a  mole  on  his  cheek,  and,  as  it  was 
on  the  side  next  the  light,  it  came  out  clear  and  strong; 
nothing  excited  more  remark  than  this.  I  saw  the  man 
himself,  after  feeling  the  mole  on  his  cheek  with  his  finger, 
go  to  touch  the  mole  on  the  picture  hanging  up  to  dry, 
exclaiming,  "  How  very  wonderful !  I  never  felt  any  thing 
here,1'  putting  his  finger  to  the  mole  on  his  cheek,  "and 
yet  there  it  is,"  pointing  to  the  picture.  But  the  form  of 
a  building,  the  shades  in  a  flower,  the  perspective  of  a 
landscape,  seemed  to  excite  no  interest.  Another  phase  of 
human  character,  peculiar  perhaps  to  no  country,  but  rather 
common  to  all,  was  the  evident  anxiety  about  personal 
appearance,  when  that  was  to  be  regarded  by  others  or 
perpetuated.  I  never  suggested  the  arrangement  of  the 
dress  or  the  hair ;  but  rarely  found  any  one  come  and  sit 
for  a  likeness  without  giving  some  previous  attention  to 
one  or  both.  Even  the  laboring  woman,  returning  from 
work  in  the  field,  with  her  child  at  her  back,  as  shown  on 
the  adjoining  page,  when  asked  if  she  would  have  her  like- 
ness taken,  adjusted  her  burden  before  having  her  tout  en- 
semhle  rendered  permanent.  Sometimes  the  women  brought 
their  slaves  to  arrange  their  hair  immediately  before  sitting 
down.  At  other  times  the  men  brought  looking-glass  and 
comb,  and,  borrowing  a  bowl  of  water  to  moisten  their 
hair,  arrange  their  toilette  by  one  holding  the  glass  for 
another.  The  Hova  women  wear  their  hair  plaited  in  ex- 
tremely fine  braids,  and  tied  in  a  number  of  small  knots  or 
bunches  all  over  the  head,  as  seen  in  the  accompanying 
portrait.  The  Betsimasaraka  women  wear  their  hair  braid- 


HOVA  WOMAN. 


HOVAU  CU1KF. 


CHAP.  v.  PORTRAIT  OF  A  HOVA  CHIEF.  165 

cd  for  two  or  three  inches,  and  then  arranged  in  a  sort  of 
circular  mass  or  ball,  two  or  three  hanging  down  on  each 
side.  The  men  usually  cut  their  hair  short,  after  the  Eu- 
ropean fashion. 

I  was  for  some  time  surprised  to  see  so  few  people  with 
gray  hair,  either  among  the  straight  or  woolly  haired  classes ; 
and  on  remarking,  on  one  occasion,  how  few  either  of  chiefs 
or  people,  masters  or  slaves,  were  gray-headed,  I  was  told 
that  all  classes  were  scrupulously  careful  to  remove  their 
gray  hairs,  and  that  this  accounted  for  the  thinness  of  hair 
with  many,  and  the  rarity  of  any  mixture  of  gray  among 
the  black.  It  appeared  to  be  a  matter  of  some  importance 
with  all  to  avoid,  as  much  as  possible,  any  symptom  of  age, 
and  an  object  of  great  desire  to  appear  or  to  be  thought 
young.  I  was  also  struck  with  the  taste  of  the  men  in  ad- 
justing their  hair.  They  did  not  comb  it  up  from  the  fore- 
head to  show  the  development  of  their  intellectual  organs, 
and  certainly  rather  drew  it  over  the  side  of  the  temples 
than  forced  it  back.  I  presumed,  however,  that  they  fol- 
lowed the  mode  most  esteemed  among  their  countrymen ; 
and  I  was  struck  with  the  remarkably  European  cast  of 
many  of  their  countenances.  Phrenologically  they  are  a 
fine  people,  having  frequently  high  foreheads  with  a  con- 
siderable amount  of  those  developments  which  are  supposed 
to  indicate  intellectual  capacity,  as  well  as  moral  excellence. 

The  portrait  of  a  Hova  chief,  on  the  opposite  page,  ex- 
hibits a  type  of  head  that  I  met  with  occasionally  on  the 
coast  and  at  the  capital.  The  olive  tinge  in  the  complex- 
ion of  this  chief  and  in  that  of  his  wife  was  exceedingly 
slight,  and  in  many  of  the  Hovas  it  is  less  than  is  frequent-  ' 
ly  seen  among  the  inhabitants  of  the  south  of  Europe.  His 
figure  was  slight  but  well  proportioned,  and  he  was  rather 
above  the  middle  stature ;  his  hair  appears  as  he  usually 
wore  it,  and  not  drawn  down  over  his  forehead.  I  became 
acquainted  with  him  by  his  calling  to  ask  me  to  accompany 


!<;<;  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CIIAI-.  v. 

him  to  his  residence,  where  one  of  his  family  was  ill  and  in 
great  suffering.  I  had  much  intercourse  with  him  after- 
ward, both  on  the  coast  and  at  the  capital,  and  his  disposi- 
tion always  appeared  peculiarly  gentle  and  benevolent. 
Jle  usually  wore  the  large  white  lamba,  bordered  with  the 
akotso,  or  fine  broad  stripes,  the  distinctive  badge  of  the 
Hovas.  The  accompanying  wood-engraving  is  a  faithful 
copy  of  the  photograph  of  which  I  brought  home  a  number 
of  copies.  Many  of  the  Hovas  possessed  remarkably  well- 
formed  heads,  though  not  always  perhaps  so  finely  propor- 
tioned as  the  one  here  represented.  The  foreheads  were 
always  well  shaped,  even  where  the  space  between  the  eye- 
brows and  the  hair,  as  in  some  few  instances,  was  compara- 
tively narrow.  The  eyes  were  never  large  or  projecting, 
but  clear  and  bright ;  and  the  eyebrows  well  defined  with- 
out being  heavy.  The  nose  was  frequently  aquiline  and 
firm,  never  thick  and  fleshy;  it  was,  however,  more  fre- 
quently straight,  and  sometimes  short  and  broad,  without 
fullness  at  the  end.  The  lips  were  generally  slightly  pro- 
jecting, though  seldom  round  and  large,  as  will  be  seen  in 
the  portraits  of  the  Hovas  inserted  in  the  subsequent  pages. 
Style  of  feature  seems  to  mark  the  Hovas  much  more  dis- 
tinctively than  color  or  hair.  The  color  of  some  of  the 
Hovas  is  as  dark  as  that  of  the  most  swarthy  races  in  the 
island,  while  their  hair  is  straight  or  curling,  and  their 
features  exhibit  the  peculiar  form  of  the  European ;  and 
even  where  the  hair  is  frizzled  or  crisped,  as  is  occasionally 
the  case,  the  features  exhibit  no  approach  to  the  negro  type. 
In  contemplating  the  figure  and  features  of  the  people,  espe- 
cially those  whose  portraits  I  secured,  I  found  myself  invol- 
untarily speculating  on  the  origin  of  the  different  races,  and 
the  causes  of  the  aspect  and  bearing  which  they  exhibited. 
The  style  of  head  shown  in  the  accompanying  portrait  was 
confined  to  the  Hovas.  I  never  saw  any  thing  approaching 
to  it  among  the  other  races,  though  with  similar  features ; 


CHAP.  v.  ORIGIN  OF  THE  HOVAS.  167 

the  color  was  among  the  Hovas,  in  some  instances,  as  dark 
as  that  of  any  on  the  island.  I  found  myself  continually 
questioning  in  my  own  mind  whether  some  of  the  Hovas 
were  originally  black ;  or,  if  not,  whether  by  intermarriages 
with  darker  races,  and  other  causes,  they  had  retained  their 
peculiar  style  of  features  but  changed  their  color,  and  thus 
afford  additional  evidence  that  the  form  of  feature  was  more 
permanent  than  color.  Sodra,  whose  portrait,  as  well  as 
those  of  the  bearers  of  my  palanquin,  and  the  women  at  the 
well,  together  with  the  woman  with  the  child  at  her  back, 
in  the  same  engraving  with  the  Hova  woman,  are  all  Bet- 
simasaraka  inhabitants  of  the  eastern  coast.  The  manner 
of  wearing  their  hair  resembles  that  of  the  natives  of  Quilli- 
mane,  on  the  Zambesi  Eiver/as  described  by  Commodore 
Owen  in  a  paper  published  in  the  second  volume  of  the 
Transactions  of  the  Geographical  Society,  but  this  is  a  coin- 
cidence too  trifling  to  support  any  conclusion  as  to  their 
African  origin.  With  regard  to  the  Hovas,  no  doubt  can 
be  entertained  that  they  are  descended  from  the  ancient  race 
from  which  the  Malayan  Archipelago  and  Eastern  Polynesia 
derive  their  inhabitants.  Farther  remarks  on  this  subject 
would  interfere  with  the  purpose  of  my  narrative,  which  has 
been  to  record  what  I  observed,  leaving  others  to  deduce 
their  own  conclusions ;  and  I  shall  be  happy  if  the  portraits 
I  have  furnished  prove  acceptable  to  any  who  may  be  in- 
terested in  that  important  branch  of  inquiry  which  relates 
to  the  several  varieties  of  the  human  family. 

My  visitors  were  generally  as  willing  to  have  their  houses 
taken  as  their  own  portraits ;  but  I  sometimes  found  it  dif- 
ficult to  prevent  the  crowd,  which  invariably  gathered  round, 
from  standing  before  the  camera,  either  with  a  desire  to  look 
or  to  be  included  in  the  picture.  From  the  natural  objects 
in  the  neighborhood,  I  obtained  views  of  some  curious  spe- 
cies of  pandanus  surrounding  a  cattle-fold  not  far  from  my 
dwelling.  Sometimes,  while  thus  employed,  I  had  applica- 


168  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  v. 

tions  of  another  kind.  On  the  first  morning  when  I  went 
out,  as  soon  as  I  had  fixed  the  camera  before  the  house 
which  I  wished  to  take,  the  mistress  of  the  premises  came 
and  asked  me  to  look  at  a'  slave  who  had  been  suffering 
some  days  with  toothache.  I  fetched  an  instrument  and 
immediately  extracted  the  tooth.  Many  of  the  natives  ap- 
peared to  suffer  from  toothache ;  and  in  more  than  one  in- 
stance I  was  required  to  remove  two  teeth  at  the  same  time 
from  one  individual. 

From  all  that  I  learned  in  conversing  with  the  natives  and 
with  foreigners  long  resident  in  the  island,  it  would  appear 
that  Madagascar  is  rich  in  medicinal  plants  and  gums ;  and 
that  the  natives  are,  to  a  certain  extent,  acquainted  with  the 
medicinal  properties  of  many  of  the  productions  of  their 
country.  They  also  manifest  considerable  skill  in  the  use 
of  them ;  but  still  many  sufferers  are  met  with  whom  it  is 
probable  that  more  efficient  medical  skill  might  relieve  or 
restore.  The  fever  which  prevails  at  certain  seasons  of  the 
year,  especially  near  the  coasts,  is  the  most  fearful  malady  to 
which  they  are  liable ;  and  natives  from  the  interior,  as  well 
as  strangers  from  abroad,  are  alike  subject  to  its  attacks; 
while  the  people  themselves  know  of  no  specific  or  effectual 
mode  of  treatment  for  it. 

Their  remedies  are  in  general  effectual  in  the  cure  of  the 
bites  or  stings  of  the  smaller  kinds  of  venomous  reptiles 
and  insects,  though  at  times  these  are  such  as  to  occasion 
great  suffering.  I  once  found  a  large  scorpion  on  my  pil- 
low ;  at  another  time,  some  large  centipedes  in  one  of  my 
boxes.  The  largest  I  saw  crawled  out  from  the  frame-work 
of  the  table  on  which  I  was  writing,  but  I  escaped  injury 
from  all.  The  bite  of  the  scorpion,  I  was  informed,  was  ex- 
ceedingly severe,  and  the  poisonous  effects  long  continued. 
One  day  I  was  startled  by  cries  of  pain  in  the  house  oppo- 
site to  that  in  which  I  dwelt,  and  was  soon  afterward  sent 
for  by  the  chief  residing  there  to  see  his  wife,  who,  in  great 


CHAP.  v.  POISONOUS  FISH.  169 

suffering  and  alarm,  was  crying  out,  "  I  shall  die !  I  shall 
die !"  A  number  of  her  neighbors  were  gathered  round  the 
•  mat  on  which  she  was  sitting.  Her  husband,  who  was  sup- 
porting her,  informed  me  that,  while  gathering  fish  on  the 
reef,  she  had  been  stung  in  the  hand  by  a  small  poisonous 
fish,  which  they  had  caught  and  brought  for  me  to  see. 
There  were  three  punctures  in  the  woman's  thumb,  and  her 
hand  and  arm  were  swollen  and  discolored.  Although 
bathed  with  oil  and  other  remedies,  the  pain  and  inflamma- 
tion continued  until  the  next  day,  when  the  swelling  abated 
and  the  poor  woman  recovered. 

There  are  several  poisonous  kinds  offish  among  the  reefs 
and  rocks  near  the  shore,  and  their  bite  or  sting  is  said  to 
be  sometimes  fatal.  There  are  also  serpents  in  the  island, 
of  various  kinds ;  but  the  largest  are  not  poisonous,  though 
they  will  bite  severely  if  assailed  or  irritated.  M.  Provint 
told  me  that  on  one  occasion,  when  he  was  traveling  in  the 
country,  having  risen  from  the  mat  on  which  he  had  slept 
during  the  night,  he  went  a  short  distance,  and  having  di- 
rected his  servant  to  prepare  the  mats  for  resuming  the  jour- 
ney, was  called  back  by  the  man,  who,  on  rolling  up  the 
mats,  discovered  an  immense  serpent,  seven  or  eight  feet 
long,  and  as  thick  in  the  body  as  an  ordinary  wine-bottle. 
It  was  coiled  up  in  a  circle  exactly  in  the  spot  where  he 
had  been  lying,  to  which  it  had  probably  been  attracted  by 
the  warmth.  He  said  he  was  startled  at  the  sight  of  such  a 
monster,  and  called  to  the  natives  to  destroy  it ;  but  instead 
of  this  the  people  took  a  piece  of  stick,  and  just  guided  its 
head  toward  the  long  grass  and  bushes,  saying,  "  Go  you 
away,  go."  They  seem  to  regard  with  a  sort  of  supersti- 
tion, almost  amounting  to  dread,  all  serpents,  crocodiles, 
and  other  dangerous  reptiles,  which  they  scrupulously  avoid 
injuring,  under  an  apprehension  of  experiencing  retaliation, 
either  from  that  identical  reptile  or  from  some  other  of  its 
species,  at  a  future  time.  The  only  serpent  which  I  saw 


170  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  v. 

was  a  small  one  between  three  and  four  feet  long,  of  a  light 
yellow  or  straw  color,  and  beautifully  marked  with  trans- 
verse stripes  of  brown  ;  but  I  was  told  the  reptile  was  not 
venomous. 

The  gentleman  under  whose  mats  the  immense  serpent 
had  coiled  itself  while  he  was  sleeping,  also  told  me  that, 
when  passing  through  the  dense  unfrequented  parts  of  the 
forests  in  the  interior,  he  met  with  large  serpents  which, 
when  he  had  come  suddenly  upon  them,  had  appeared  irri- 
tated and  had  reared  themselves  up  several  feet,  as  if  to  re- 
sist his  progress,  till  he  attacked  them  with  a  spear. 

Though  the  animals  found  in  Madagascar  are  few  as 
compared  with  those  which  people  the  adjacent  continent 
of  Africa,  there  are  several  peculiarly  interesting  species, 
respecting  which  I  was  anxious  to  obtain  information,  and, 
if  possible,  procure  specimens.  Among  these  was  the  aye- 
aye,  Cheiromys  Madagascariensis,  a  remarkable  animal,  found 
only  in  Madagascar,  and  of  which  only  one  specimen  exists 
in  Europe,  in  the  Museum  of  Paris.  I  spoke  to  some  of  the 
intelligent  natives  about  the  aye-aye,  and  found  it  was  but 
rarely  met  with,  and  seemed  to  be  regarded  with  a  sort  of 
superstitious,  feeling  which  would  make  them  rather  un- 
willing to  attempt  its  capture.  From  their  remarks  and 
those  of  others  it  does  not  appear  to  be  confined  to  the 
western  coast  of  the  island,  as  has  been  supposed,  several 
having  been  taken  in  other  parts,  and  I  was  led  to  infer 
that  there  is  more  than  one  species,  as  some  described  the 
animal  as  larger  than  others. 

Two  French  gentlemen,  who  had  resided  many  years  on 
the  island  and  with  whom  I  frequently  conversed  about 
the  animal,  had  both  had  it  more  than  once  in  their  posses- 
sion. M.  de  Lastelle  said  its  habits  were  nocturnal,  and 
that  it  was  exceedingly  active  during  the  night ;  that  he 
lost  one  during  the  night ;  suspecting  that,  from  supersti- 
tious motives,  the  natives  had  set  it  free,  he  confined  one 


NOTICES  OF  THE  AYE-AYE. 


171 


afterward  in  a  barrel  in  his  house,  but  that  it  ate  through 
the  barrel  and  escaped.  M.  Provint  had  kept  one  for  some 
time  in  his  house.  He  described  its  eyes  as  large  and 
round,  its  ears  as  thin  and  broad,  its  color  brown,  merging 
into  gray,  and  its  thick  bushy  tail  shorter  than  that  of  the 
large  black  and  white  lemur.  It  subsisted  chiefly  on  boiled 
rice  and  fruits,  and  during  the  day  lay  asleep  rolled  up  in 
a  basket  in  the  house,  apparently  undisturbed  by  persons 
passing  near ;  but  at  night  it  was  necessary  to  secure  it,  and 


ultimately  it  escaped  by  eating,  during  the  night,  through  a 
bar  of  hard  wood  of  more  than  two  inches  square,  a  feat 
which  the  position  and  form  of  its  strong  sharp  incisors  or 
cutting-teeth  would  render  it  well  able  to  accomplish,  as  few 
animals  are  supposed  to  possess  greater  cutting  power.  I 


172  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  v. 

was  encouraged  to  hope,  during  my  visits  to  the  island,  that 
I  might  add  an  aye-aye  to  my  collection  before  finally  leav- 
ing, but  my  friend  had  not  been  able  to  secure  one  when  I 
left.  There  is  a  stuffed  specimen  in  the  Museum  of  Natu- 
ral History  at  Mauritius,  but  it  did  not  accord  exactly  with 
the  accounts  I  had  received  in  the  island,  and  as  Mr.  P.  A, 
Whiche,  who  had  presented  it  to  the  museum,  was  not  cer- 
tain whether  the  captain  of  one  of  his  ships  had  brought  it 
from  Madagascar  or  the  coast  of  Africa,  I  felt  doubtful 
whether  it  was  the  Madagascar  animal  or  not ;  or,  if  so, 
much  inclined  to  expect  that  more  than  one  species  will  be 
found. 


CHAP.  vi.     DOMESTIC  SLAVERY  IN  MADAGASCAR.  173 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Domestic  Slavery  in  Madagascar. — Prices  of  Slaves. — Modes  of  Punishment. 
— Numbers  of  Slaves. — Native  Manufactures. — Rofia  Cloth. — Native  Bask- 
ets.— Fondness  of  Natives  for  Barter. — Conversations  with  the  People. — 
Desire  after  Education. — Historical  Notice  of  the  Persecution  of  the  Chris- 
tians.— Simple  Scriptural  Character  of  their  Faith. — Testimonies  in  their 
Favor. — Scriptural  Basis  of  their  religious  Organizations  and  Observances. 
— Social  Gatherings. — Perils  to  which  they  have  been  exposed. — Public 
Confessions. — Constancy  unto  Death.— Nature  and  Severity  of  their  Pun- 
ishments.— Numbers  who  have  suffered  on  account  of  their  Religion. — Ex- 
ecutions in  1849. — Latest  Edict  against  Christian  Observances. — Opinions 
of  the  Natives  which  render  Christianity  peculiarly  criminal  in  the  Estima- 
tion of  the  Heathen. — Claims  of  the  Christians  to  Sympathy  and  Com- 
passion. 

IN  the  domestic  arrangements  of  the  Malagasy  most  of 
the  employments  connected  with  providing  and  preparing 
food  are  performed  by  slaves.  Slavery,  in  fact,  is  one  of 
the  "  domestic  institutions"  of  the  country.  It  involves  the 
buying  and  selling  of  men  and  women,  sometimes  in  the 
public  markets,  and  at  other  times  by  taking  them  about 
from  place  to  place,  and  offering  them  like  any  other  goods 
for  sale. 

I  was  walking  one  day  on  the  beach  with  my  companion 
when  a  man  approached  us,  followed  by  a  boy  about  eleven 
or  twelve  years  old.  The  man  stopped  and  asked  an  officer 
standing  near  if  he  wanted  a  slave,  and,  pointing  to  the  boy, 
said  he  was  for  sale ;  the  price,  he  added,  was  ten  dollars. 
The  party  appealed  to  declining  to  purchase,  the  man  made 
a  sign  to  the  boy  and  then  walked  on,  the  slave  following 
at  the  distance  of  a  few  paces.  On  another  occasion,  as  I 
was  sitting  at  breakfast,  my  servant  came  to  say  that  some 


174  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vi. 

one  wished  to  speak  to  me,  and,  on  my  going  out,  I  found 
two  men  in  the  court  or  yard ;  one  of  them  asked  me  if  I 
did  not  want  to  buy  a  boy,  pointing  to  a  nice,  healthy -look- 
ing lad,  scarcely  twelve  years  of  age,  who  stood  behind  him, 
and  whom  he  called  to  come  forward  and  show  himself. 
On  my  shaking  my  head  and  intimating  that  I  did  not 
want  a  slave,  it  was  explained  that  it  was  not  temporary 
service  that  was  offered,  but  that  the  boy  would  work  for 
me  all  his  life,  or  could  be  sold  to  another,  and  that  the 
price  was  only  ten  dollars,  little  more  than  two  pounds  En- 
glish money.  My  continued  refusal  left  no  hope  of  the  lad 
being  sold  to  me,  and  they  soon  went  away,  followed  by 
their  slave,  whose  appearance  interested  me  much,  and  ex- 
cited strong  feelings  of  commiseration  toward  one  in  whose 
breast  all  the  ardent  aspirations  of  youth,  with  the  prospects 
of  happiness  and  contentment  in  after-life,  must  be  stifled 
by  the  stern  reality  that  he  would  never  be  his  own,  but 
must,  until  death  should  release  him  from  his  bondage,  ren- 
der unrequited  labor  to  another.  The  price  of  a  male  slave 
was  from  seventy  to  one  hundred  dollars,  and  of  a  female 
slave  from  twenty  to  forty  dollars. 

From  the  little  which.  I  saw  of  the  domestic  slaves  in 
Madagascar,  I  should  think  their  condition  vastly  superior 
to  that  of  the  severe  labor  and  suffering  which  characterized 
the  slavery  of  our  West  Indian  colonies,  yet  I  occasionally 
saw  some  of  the  inevitable  consequences  of  the  system  that 
were  perhaps  more  revolting  in  their  moral  degradation 
than  in  the  physical  suffering  inflicted.  In  one  of  the  houses 
which  I  entered  one  day  a  number  of  female  slaves  were  at 
work.  Some  of  them  were  carrying  baskets  of  cotton  or 
other  articles  from  one  room  to  another,  and,  as  they  passed 
along,  I  saw  one  young  girl  who  had  a  couple  of  boards 
fixed  on  her  shoulders,  each  of  them  rather  more  than  two 
feet  long,  and  ten  inches  or  a  foot  wide,  fastened  together 
by  pieces  of  wood  nailed  on  the  under  side.  A  piece  had 


MODES  OF  PUNISHING  SLAVES. 


175 


been  cut  out  of  each  board  in  the  middle,  so  that,  when 
fix.ed  together,  they  fitted  close  to  her  neck,  and  the  poor 
girl,  while  wearing  this  instrument  of  punishment  and  dis- 
grace, was  working  with  the  rest.  On  another  occasion  I 
saw  a  boy,  apparently  about  fifteen  years  of  age,  with  a 
rough,  heavy  iron  collar  on  his  naked  neck.  It  seemed  to 


MODES    OP  PUNISHING   SLAVES. 


be  formed  by  a  square  bar  of  iron,  about  three  quarters  of 
an  inch  thick,  being  bent  round  his  neck,  and  the  two  ends 
then  joined  together.  Yet  he  was  working  with  a  number 
of  other  boys  and  men  employed  in  carrying  fire-wood  to 
the  beach  for  the  shipping.  Another  slave,  whom  I  saw 
working  near  the  same  place,  had  an  iron  collar  round  his 
neck,  with  two  or  three  pointed  iron  spikes,  six  or  seven 
inches  long,  fixed  in  the  collar,  and  standing  up  by  the 
sides  of  his  head.  These,  however,  were  the  only  instances 
of  this  kind  of  punishment  which  came  under  my  notice. 


176  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vi. 

So  short  a  residence  as  mine  among  the  people  afforded 
opportunity  for  little  beyond  a  passing  glance  at  the  outside 
aspect  of  slavery  in  Madagascar,  and  a  brief  notice  of  the 
subject  is  consequently  all  that  I  have  attempted.  The  con- 
dition of  the  slaves  as  compared  with  that  of  the  free,  though 
exhibiting  many  of  the  evils  inherent  in  slavery,  and  insep- 
arable from  it,  appeared  in  many  respects  much  less  oppress- 
ive than  I  had  been  prepared  to  expect.  In  some  instances, 
however,  it  was  hopeless,  the  sentence  of  being  sold  into 
slavery  for  some  offense  peculiarly  obnoxious  to  the  author- 
ities being  at  times  made  irreversible ;  so  that,  however  the 
friends  or  relatives  of  the  party  punished  might  be  able  or 
disposed  to  effect  his  liberation  by  the  payment  of  the  sum 
at  which  he  had  been  valued,  or  for  which  he  was  sold,  they 
were  not  allowed  to  do  so,  the  penalty  inflicted  having  been 
not  only  slavery,  but  unredeemable  slavery.  This  sentence 
has  been  rendered  still  more  oppressive  in  the  case  of  some 
of  the  Christians,  when  one  condition  of  their  slavery  has 
been  that  they  should  only  be  sold  to  parties  who  would 
undertake  to  keep  them  continually  at  hard  work. 

The  proportion  of  slaves  to  the  entire  population  must  be 
great,  as  the  children  of  all  slaves  are  such  from  birth ;  and, 
besides  the  natural  increase  of  the  slave  population,  many 
born  free  become  slaves  in  consequence  of  debt,  crime,  or 
capture  in  war.  The  Hovas  have  of  late  years  returned 
from  their  military  expeditions  into  distant  parts  of  the 
island  with  vast  numbers  of  captives,  often  hundreds,  and 
sometimes  thousands,  chiefly  youths,  women,  and  children, 
all  of  whom  are  usually  sold  for  slaves,  and  as  such  are  dis- 
tributed over  the  whole  of  the  country. 

I  have  already  noticed  the  frequent  visits  of  those  who 
came  to  inquire  what  new  or  needed  articles  I  had  brought 
to  sell,  but  far  greater  numbers  came  to  endeavor  to  induce 
me  to  buy.  Almost  all  classes  appear  exceedingly  fond  of 
bartering,  or  buying  and  selling;  and  no  long  intervals 


CHAP.  vi.  MATS.— EOFIA  CLOTH.  177 

passed  with  me  uninterrupted  by  persons  coming  to  offer 
either  poultry,  eggs,  honey,  or  articles  of  native  manufac- 
ture for  sale. 

Among  the  latter  were  some  beautiful  mats,  for  covering 
their  floors  or  forming  their  beds.  The  sleeping-mats  are 
generally  of  one  uniform-  color,  but  in  some  instances  the 
patterns  are  worked  in  different  colors,  formed  by  steeping 
the  rushes  in  native  dyes,  which  are  permanent,  and  yet  al- 
low the  rush  to  retain  its  smooth  and  shining  appearance. 
The  only  colors  I  observed  in  these  articles  were  black  and 
various  shades  of  red. 

With  a  similar  kind  of  rush  they  also  weave  great  num- 
bers of  matting-bags,  in  which  they  preserve  their  rice,  both 
for  their  own  use  and  for  exportati©n.  But  the  article  most 
extensively  manufactured  throughout  the  island,  both  for 
home  use  and  for  exportation,  is  a  coarse  kind  of  cloth 
woven  with  the  thread  or  strips  of  the  young  inner  leaflets 
of  the  rofia  palm.  These  leaflets  are  about  three  or  four 
feet  long,  but  in  weaving  the  cloth  a  number  of  the  split 
threads  are  fastened  together,  and  the  cloth  is  made  in  pieces 
varying  from  three  to  four  yards  in  length,  and  nearly  a 
yard  wide.  The  texture  of  the  cloth  is  rather  coarse  and 
stiff  to  the  touch,  but  exceedingly  tough  and  durable ;  the 
color  is  a  sort  of  nankeen-yellow,  generally  with  two  or 
three  stripes  of  blue,  produced  by  preparations  of  native  in- 
digo, extending  through  the  whole  length.  Eofia  cloth  is 
used  for  many  purposes  in  the  island,  and  constitutes  almost 
the  only  clothing  of  the  laboring  classes.  The  threads  of 
this  cloth  are  flat  and  untwisted.  I  have  entered  some  of 
the  houses  in  which  the  process  of  weaving  was  going  on, 
and  found  the  loom  extremely  simple ;  the  process  is  labo- 
rious and  slow.  At  other  times  I  have  seen  the  people,  as 
I  passed  through  the  villages,  arranging  the  threads  for 
their  warp  under  the  shade  of  overspreading  trees  outside 
their  dwellings. 

M 


178  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CIJAP.  vi. 

The  colored  patterns  of  finer  cloths  are  produced  by  dye- 
ing the  threads,  not  by  coloring  or  printing  the  cloth  after 
it  is  woven.  Hence  they  resemble  what  in  England  are 
called  gingham  and  plaid  patterns.  These  patterns  are  ar- 
ranged with  great  exactness  and  taste,  and  the  colors,  almost 
always  rich  and  deep,  are  much  more  varied  and  numerous 
than  might  be  expected,  considering  the  ignorance  of  chem- 
istry in  their  formation.  I  saw  many  articles  of  dress,  such 
as  cloaks,  coats,  jackets,  and  waistcoats,  made  of  rofia  cloth, 
both  in  Madagascar  and  Mauritius,  and  was  surprised  at  the 
freshness  of  the  colors  even  in  the  oldest  cloths. 

Native  baskets  of  various  sizes  and  materials  were  also 
brought  to  me  for  sale.  Some  of  these  were  oblong,  like  a 
lady's  work-box  in  size,  and  generally  woven  in  a  neat  pat- 
tern of  red  and  white,  or  with  the  addition  of  black.  Others 
were  smaller  and  square,  covered  with  a  lid  to  which  a 
handle  was  attached  in  a  curious  manner.  But  the  most 
beautiful  was  a  small  kind  of  basket  or  woven  box,  made 
of  a  silvery  white  kind  of  grass  split  into  very  fine  threads 
or  strips,  plaited  with  extreme  neatness,  and  almost  endless 
diversity  of  beautiful  pattern.  These  boxes  are  oblong  or 
square,  and  vary  in  size  from  half  an  inch  to  two,  three,  or 
nine  inches  square.  Nothing  can  surpass  the  delicacy  of 
the  workmanship  of  these  articles,  in  which,  like  the  mats, 
there  is  no  careless  joining,  loose  thread,  or  unfinished  part 
to  be  found.  What  renders  them  more  remarkable  is  that 
they  are  all,  even  the  smallest,  lined  with  a  different  kind 
of  plait,  so  that  they  have  the  same  firmness,  durability,  and 
general  completeness  as  the  matting.  Without  losing  any 
thing  of  this,  they  are  many  of  them  so  small  as  scarcely  to 
contain  a  lady's  ring,  and  certainly  not  her  thimble.  I  be- 
lieve these  delicate  articles  are  manufactured  only  by  the 
women  of  the  Hovas,  or  other  tribes  occupying  the  centre 
of  the  island. 

Besides  the  mats  and  baskets,  many  persons  are  employed 


CHAP.  vi.  IMPORTUNITY  OF  TRADERS.  179 

in  the  manufacture  of  hats,  for  use  among  the  natives,  for 
sale  to  the  ships'  crews,  or  for  exportation.  One  kind  is 
made  of  grass,  resembling  in  appearance  our  fine  English 
straw,  though  less  durable ;  others  are  made  of  different 
species  of  rushes,  sometimes  as  fine,  and  very  much  resem- 
bling Leghorn.  They  are  well-shaped  and  durable,  and 
exceedingly  valuable  for  the  comfortable  shade  they  afford. 

All  these  articles,  though  sometimes  brought  for  sale  by 
the  men,  were  manufactured  by  the  women ;  the  rofia  cloth 
and  the  coarser  kinds  of  mats  by  the  slaves.  A  man  and 
his  wife  resided  in  the  same  compound  or  inclosure  with 
me,  though  they  did  not  belong  to  the  owner  of  the  house, 
but  to  different  masters.  I  observed  that  the  woman  was 
chiefly  employed  in  the  gathering  and  drying  of  rushes  and 
in  the  manufacturing  of  large  mats  or  bags  for  rice,  both  of 
which  were  sold  for  the  benefit  of  her  master. 

I  was  Sometimes  amused  with  the  perseverance  manifested 
by  the  venders  of  different  kinds  of  goods,  who  continued 
to  come  time  after  time,  notwithstanding  the  most  explicit 
declaration  that  none  of  their  articles  were  needed.  One 
man,  who  had  brought  poultry  and  fish,  and  then  matting 
and  baskets,  but  without  success,  most  importunately  de- 
manded what  I  did  want.  I  told  him  that  if,  during  his 
journeys  in  the  forests,  he  should  meet  with  any  plants  or 
flowers  such  as  I  showed  him  drawings  of  I  would  buy 
them  of  him,  provided  they  were  of  the  right  sorts.  He 
seemed  quite  delighted,  and  said  he  would  bring  some,  of- 
fering at  the  same  time  to  become  my  aid-de-camp,  and  to 
carry  out  my  wishes  in  regard  to  any  thing  I  might  desire 
to  obtain.  I  begged  to  decline  his  proposal  for  this  perma- 
nent appointment,  but  assured  him  again  that  if  he  found 
any  of  the  plants  I  was  anxious  to  obtain  I  would  reward 
him  for  his  trouble. 

Most  of  the  parties  who  came  with  articles  for  sale  re- 
mained only  a  short  time ;  others,  however,  made  much 


180  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vi. 

longer  visits,  and  as  my  object  was  to  learn  as  much  as  pos- 
sible of  their  opinions  and  circumstances  in  reference  to  sub- 
jects which  were  to  me  most  interesting,  they  were  encour- 
aged to  come  as  often  and  to  stay  as  long  as  they  chose. 
My  knowledge  of  the  language  was  still  extremely  limit- 
ed, and  when  we  advanced  beyond  the  mere  common-place 
terms  of  civility  on  meeting  and  parting  I  generally  pro- 
posed to  them  to  write  down  what  they  had  to  say.  In  this 
manner  they  often  proposed  deeply  interesting  and  import- 
ant inquiries.  I  then  wrote  down  my  replies,  or  such  ques- 
tions as  I  wished  them  to  answer,  and,  though  this  process 
was  somewhat  tedious,  it  had,  as  I  was  circumstanced,  some 
great  advantages,  for  by  this  means  I  was  able  to  preserve 
much  valuable  information  which  might  otherwise  have 
been  forgotten ;  and  although  in  the  expression  of  my  own 
sentiments  or  wishes  I  might  not  have  been  quite  correct, 
yet,  by  the  help  of  the  Malagasy  dictionary  and  the  Scrip- 
tures translated  into  that  language,  I  could  always  be  sure 
of  the  right  words  for  the  things  I  wished  to  state,  though  I 
might  still  be  at  fault  with  the  prefixes  or  affixes  of  differ- 
ent words,  which,  like  the  hooks  and  chains  which  link  the 
carriages  of  a  rail-way  train  together,  unite  in  their  proper 
order  the  chief  words  of  a  sentence. 

On  several  subjects  of  interest  I  had  written  to  intelligent 
natives  in  other  parts  of  the  island,  and  received  from  them 
very  ample  communications,  which  often  furnished  matter 
for  much  pleasing,  and  to  me  instructive  conversation.  The 
books  I  had  with  me,  some  of  them  illustrated,  also  suggest- 
ed topics  of  earnest  and  repeated  inquiry  on  the  part  of  my 
visitors,  whose  interest  never  tired,  while  the  feeling  seemed 
deep  and  powerful  in  reference  to  the  subjects  which  thus 
engaged  our  attention.  The  opinions  entertained,  the  usages 
observed,  the  course  of  procedure  followed  by  individuals 
or  communities  in  other  Christian  countries,  were  all  mat- 
ters of  lively  interest  to  them ;  and,  to  the  best  of  my  abil- 


CHAP.  vi.        CONVERSATIONS  WITH  THE  PEOPLE.  181 

ity,  I  endeavored  to  give  them,  on  these  and  similar  sub- 
jects, such  information  as  seemed  most  likely  to  be  useful  as 
well  as  interesting  to  them. 

The  subject  of  general  education  was  always  a  welcome 
and  interesting  topic.  Many  seemed  anxious  also  to  know 
more  of  the  world,  as  well  as  the  condition  and  pursuits  of 
its  various  inhabitants ;  and  I  often  regretted  that  I  had  not 
with  me  an  atlas,  some  good  maps,  or  a  globe,  which  might, 
at  one  view,  have  corrected  many  of  their  erroneous  ideas 
on  questions  of  geography,  while  the  same  means  might 
have  given  them  more  correct  ideas  of  the  general  outline, 
relative  position,  and  extent  of  the  several  portions  of  our 
globe.  The  war  with  the  Eussians,  which  about  this  time 
commenced,  though  naturally  a  subject  of  great  excitement, 
and  of  frequent  conversation  among  the  foreigners  residing 
on  the  island  or  visiting  the  port,  did  not  appear  to  inter- 
est the  people  so  much  as  some  of  the  reports  they  had  heard 
of  rail- ways  and  steam-navigation,  or  the  electric  telegraph. 
I  did  not  hear  that  a  steam-vessel  had  ever  visited  Tama- 
tave. 

In  answer  to  my  inquiries,  I  learned  that,  although  there 
were  no  longer  any  public  schools,  most  of  the  intelligent 
members  of  the  community  were  deeply  sensible  of  the 
value  of  education,  and  that  the  chiefs  and  Others  who  were 
able  to  read  used  their  best  endeavors  to  teach  their  own 
children.  I  was  also  informed,  but  am  not  certain  how  cor- 
rectly, that  books  with  the  words  arranged  in  lines  extend- 
ing across  the  page  were  prohibited,  but  that  books  with  the 
words  arranged  in  columns — I  suppose  spelling-books — 
would  be  gladly  received. 

I  was  naturally  led  to  make  many  inquiries  respecting 
the  Christians,  and  received  far  more  ample  and  explicit  in- 
formation than  I  had  anticipated.  All  spoke  of  the  great 
hardships  they  had  endured,  of  the  unimpeachable  tenor  of 
their  lives  in  every  respect  in  which  their  religion  was  not 


182  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  vi. 

concerned:  their  religion  was  their  only  crime.  Opinions 
varied  much  as  to  their  numbers,  some  parties  expressing 
themselves  as  if  such  had  been  the  severe  and  decisive  char- 
acter of  the  measures  adopted  to  prevent  the  spread  of  their 
opinions  among  the  people  that  but  few  remained.  Others, 
however,  were,  of  a  different  opinion,  though  all  agreed  in 
stating  that  no  Christian  observances  were  any  longer  pub- 
licly practiced  in  the  country. 

Conversations  on  this  all-important  subject  were  render- 
ed the  more  interesting  to  me,  as  well  as  more  instructive 
and  affecting,  from  the  circumstance  of  such  conversations 
being  frequently  maintained  with  those  who  had  been  per- 
sonally connected  with  the  proceedings  to  which  they  re- 
ferred, and  involved  in  all  their  fearful  consequences.  In- 
tercourse, the  most  frank  and  cordial,  was  often  held  in  this 
manner  with  those  who  had  themselves  been  made  acquaint- 
ed with  what  these  people  believed — with  the  truths  of  Di- 
vine revelation ;  who  had  experienced  something  of  the 
morally  transforming  influence  of  that  truth,  and  had  cher- 
ished the  hopes  of  future  blessedness  which  it  alone  can  in- 
spire. They  had  also  suffered  much  in  the  present  life  for 
their  hopes  of  the  life  to  come.  Some  had  endured  the  or- 
deal of  the  tangena,  or  poison- water ;  some  had  suffered  deg- 
radation, fine,  bondage,  and  convict  labor,  on  account  of 
having  been  implicated  with  the  Christians.  They  bore  in 
their  bodies  the  marks  of  their  sufferings.  Their  communi- 
cations, therefore,  were  not  mere  recitals  of  crude  specula- 
tions, nor  endeavors  to  satisfy  an  aimless  curiosity,  but  re- 
lated to  matters  with  the  importance  of  which  they  had 
been  deeply  impressed,  and  in  which  they  had  felt  a  per- 
sonal and  anxious  solicitude  upon  their  minds  and  hearts. 
The  truth  had  operated  like  seed  germinating  upon  a  vir- 
gin soil,  and  the  freshness  and  vigor  of  its  growth  had  been 
proportionate.  I  could  not  avoid  noticing  the  absence  of 
all  bitter  and  vindictive  feelings  toward  those  who  had  in- 


CHAP  vi.  THEIR  STANDARD  OF  MORAL  CHARACTER.          183 

flicted  the  sufferings  they  had  borne.  They  seemed  to  re- 
gard it  as  permitted  by  God,  and  to  speak  of  it  as  a  cause 
for  exercising  confidence  in  the  Most  High. 

The  circumstances  of  the  individuals  about  whom  we 
often  conversed  had  been  peculiar  and  almost  unprecedent- 
ed in  the  annals  of  the  past.  Those  from  whom  alone  they 
had  received  instruction  on  the  subject  of  religion  had  been 
removed  almost  as  soon  as  their  lessons  had  begun  to  take 
effect,  arid,  thus  deprived  of  their  teachers,  but  few  means 
•were  left  to  them  of  supplying  the  deficiency  which  must 
have  been  severely  felt.  They  had  been  required  by  the 
authorities  under  whom  they  lived  to  surrender  all  their 
books,  and  the  few  retained  were  forbidden  to  be  used.  The 
chief  means  of  preserving  their  faith  were  small  portions  of 
God's  Word.  As,  in  our  physical  organization,  the  loss  'of 
one  faculty  is  often  attended  with  the  augmented  efficiency 
of  those  that  remain,  so,  with  regard  to  their  means  of  spir- 
itual improvement,  deprived  of  all  other  advantages,  and 
possessing  that  which  remained  only  in  a  very  limited  de- 
gree, they  seemed  to  have  acquired  a  familiarity  with  those 
portions  of  divine  truth  to  which  they  had  access,  and  to 
have  studied  them  with  an  avidity,  affection,  and  persever- 
ance truly  wonderful.  From  all  the  accounts  that  were 
given,  the  truth  seems  to  have  been  sought  as  a  priceless 
treasure,  and  hoarded  in  their  hearts  as  something  more 
precious  than  gold  and  dearer  than  life.  Their  faith  in  its 
entireness  and  solidity  was  based  simply  on  the  Scriptures. 
They  seem  neither  to  have  known  or  thought  of  any  sys- 
tem or  creed  as  such,  but  to  have  regarded  the  truth  of  the 
Bible  as  that  which  was  able  to  make  them  wise  for  both 
worlds.  Intimately  associated  with  their  careful  study  of 
the  Scriptures  seems  to  have  been  their  constant  habit  of 
prayer.  It  often  appeared  to  me  that  they  might  have  been 
appropriately  called  by  the  same  name  as  that  by  which  the 
early  Christians  in  the  South  Sea  Islands  were  universally 


184  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vl. 

designated,  the  praying  people.  The  Word  of  God  and  pray- 
er seem  to  have  been  the  two  sources  whence  they  derived 
that  vigor  and  maturity  of  Christian  character  which  they 
have  presented  to  the  world. 

In  these  men,  as  well  as  elsewhere,  divine  truth  had  pro- 
duced those  astonishing  transformations  of  character  which 
rendered  them  witnesses  for  God,  living  evidences,  the  un- 
equivocal, unmistakable  subjects  of  a  wonderful  moral 
change. 

The  standard  of  moral  excellence  which,  so  far  as  I  could 
learn,  the  Christians  had  selected,  was  simply  that  which  is 
presented  by  the  Scriptures,  and  to  attain  this  standard  and 
practically  but  most  unobtrusively  to  exhibit- it  to  others 
appears  to  have  been  their  constant  aim,  at  the  same  time 
that  it  proved  one  undeniable  source  of  their  sufferings ;  for 
the  introduction  and  exemplification  of  the  morality  of  the 
Bible  was  said  to  be  changing  the  customs  of  the  country. 
Still  it  was  even  acknowledged  by  some  whose  office  it  was 
to  try,  condemn,  and  punish  the  professors  of  this  faith 
that  their  conduct  was  indeed  different  from  that  of  others. 
We  do  not  wonder  at  the  observation  of  one  of  these  judges, 
who,  when  remarking  on  the  scrupulous  exactness  with 
which  property  committed  to  their  trust  had  been  returned, 
observed,  "  These  people  would  be  good  servants  indeed  if 
it  were  not  for  their  praying." 

Besides  intercourse  with  the  people  in  reference  to  what 
had  been  the  aspect  which  the  Gospel  had  presented  in 
those  who  professed  it,  I  addressed  a  number  of  inquiries 
to  persons  of  different  classes,  and  their  testimony  confirm- 
ed the  views  here  given  of  the  consistent  lives  of  those  who 
were  regarded  as  Christians  and  continued  to  be  numbered 
with  the  people  of  God.  Doubtless  there  were  exceptions, 
but  they  were  only  exceptions ;  and  such  was  the  general 
nature  of  the  evidence  given  in  their  favor,  and  such,  we 
have  reason  to  believe,  had  been  in  reality  the  blameless 
tenor  of  their  lives. 


CHAP.  vi.  ECCLESIASTICAL  POLITY.  185 

At  the  time  of  my  visit  these  people  had  been  seventeen 
or  eighteen  years  without  any  foreign  teachers,  or  any  ex- 
perienced counselor  or  guide ;  and,  as  I  heard  that  at  differ- 
ent times  there  had  been  considerable  numbers,  I  was  led 
to  make  inquiries  respecting  the  course  they  had  pursued 
in  reference  to  such  proceedings  as  would  be  likely  to  be 
engaged  in  by  persons  dwelling  near  or  holding  social  in- 
tercourse together.  While  I  heard  of  nothing  to  disturb 
the  unselfish  affection,  the  benevolent  consideration,  and 
the  sacred  fellowship  which  they  seem  to  have  shared  to- 
gether, I  was  as  much  surprised  as  delighted  to  find  that 
their  organization  for  the  purpose  of  mutual  edification  and 
the  spiritual  benefit  of  others  had  been  according  to  the 
plain  and  simple  model  propounded  in  the  Holy  Scriptures. 
Just  as  it  is  there  exhibited,  so  far  as  their  means  admitted 
and  their  necessities  required,  it  ha<jl  been  by  them  adopt- 
ed ;  and  whatever  distinctive  form  their  ecclesiastical  poli- 
ty, if  such  a  term  be  applicable,  may  in  any  future  age  as- 
sume, all  that  can  be  said  of  the  Martyr  Church  of  Mada- 
gascar in  its  earlier  years  is,  that  it  has  been  built  by  its 
own  members,  guided,  we  trust,  by  God's  Spirit,  upon  the 
foundation  of  the  few  solid  and  imperishable  principles  set 
forth  in  the  teaching  of  the  New  Testament. 

It  has  been  already  stated  that  the  government  of  Mada- 
gascar had  forbidden  the  performance  of  any  act  of  Chris- 
tian worship  under  the  severest  penalties.  There  has,  con- 
sequently, been  no  public  worship  or  other  outward  relig- 
ious observance;  but  I  learned  that  in  reference  to  those 
teachings  which  enjoin  the  avowal  of  such  as  make  profes- 
sion of  their  faith,  and  the  uniting  in  fellowship  for  com- 
memorating that  ordinance  whereby  the  disciples  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  do  show  forth  his  death  till  He  come,  they  had 
been  accustomed,  in  more  than  one  locality,  to  follow  as 
closely  as  possible  the  few  simple  and  affecting  directions 
of  the  Savior  himself,  and  the  illustration  of  those  given 


18G  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vi. 

by  the  great  apostle  of  the  Gentiles.  They  had,  I  was  in- 
formed, at  times  found  a  difficulty  with  regard  to  the  ele- 
ments to  be  used;  but,  so  far  as  their  circumstances  ad- 
mitted, they  had  followed,  as  their  safe  and  unerring  guide, 
the  Word  of  inspired  Truth.  If,  in  relation  to  any  of  these 
subjects,  they  had  not  observed  all  that  may  be  taught  in 
the  New  Testament,  they  had  added  nothing  thereunto. 
Nothing  traceable  to  the  latent  influence  of  idolatry,  or 
commended  by  imaginary  fitness  or  advantage,  had,  so  far 
as  I  heard,  been  introduced,  but  they  had  been  content,  in 
these  and  other  matters,  to  adhere  to  the  written  Word, 
only  too  thankful  when  permitted  peacefully  to  do  so.  I 
was  informed  that,  although  they  knew  the  peril  to  which 
they  were  exposed,  they  had  been  accustomed  to  listen  to 
the  words  of  instruction  and  encouragement,  to  sing  the 
praise  of  the  divine  Eedeemer,  and  to  draw  near  the  mercy- 
seat  in  prayer.  These  simple  services  were  held  not  only 
in  the  habitations  of  men,  though  chiefly  at  the  midnight 
hour,  but  also  on  the  distant  mountain's  side,  in  the  dreary 
cavern,  or  in  the  concealment  of  the  remote  and  almost  im- 
pervious forest. 

Love  of  life,  and  nature's  first  great  impulse,  self-preserv- 
ation, had  induced  such  gatherings  as  these,  because  their 
creed  and  their  conduct  had  been  declared  by  the  govern- 
ment to  be  criminal  and  injurious  to  the  nation.  There 
did  not,  however,  appear  to  have  been  the  slightest  founda- 
tion for  any  such  conclusion,  so  far  as  the  sentiments  or  the 
conduct  of  the  Christians  had  been  concerned.  Many  had 
been  the  channels  through  which  accusations  against  them 
had  come  to  the  authorities  during  the  long  period  of  their 
proscription.  Sometimes  it  was  by  the  subordinates  of 
those  in  authority,  who  were  ordered  to  track  their  steps 
and  to  listen  or  spy  around  their  dwellings ;  sometimes  by 
those  to  whom,  impelled  by  the  yearnings  of  love  to  their 
souls,  they  had  declared  the  foundation  of  their  own  hopes ; 


CHAP.  vi.  CONSTANCY  UNTO  DEATH.  187 

sometimes  by  their  nearest  relatives.  The  father  had  some- 
times accused  his  child.  Indictments  against  some  had 
been  preferred  by  those  to  whom  the  same  mother  had 
given  birth,  and  with  whom  they  would  otherwise  have 
been  laid,  after  death,  side  by  side  in  the  same  tomb.  Even 
the  slaves  who  for  years  had  served  in  their  families,  and 
had  thus  become  acquainted  with  all  their  habits,  had  been 
admitted  as  accusers  and  witnesses  against  them.  Yet 
none  of  these  had  laid  to  their  charge  any  thing  but  their 
religion. 

On  the  other  hand,  much  had  been  by  the  same  means 
adduced  in  their  favor.  They  did  not  deny  that  they  had 
prayed,  but  freely  and  frankly,  and  no  one  impeached  their 
testimony,  declared  that  they  had  prayed  for  their  sover- 
eign and  her  officers,  for  the  good  of  the  kingdom,  and  the 
prosperity  and  happiness  of  the  people.  No  contrary  evi- 
dence was  ever  brought  forward,  and  even  their  judges, 
after  listening  to  the  items  of  accusation  against  them,  have 
been  known  to  declare  that  there  was  no  harm  in  that ; 
but  the  reading  of  the  book  and  the  praying  had  been  pro- 
hibited, and  slavery,  torture,  or  death  was  the  penalty  of 
disregarding  such  prohibition.  The  book  had  taught  them 
to  fear  God  and  honor  the  king,  and  prayer  had  been  the 
means  of  enabling  them  to  do  both,  to  meet  the  claims  of 
the  present  life,  and  yet  to  cherish  the  hope  of  the  life 
which  is  to  come.  As  one  of  their  own  number  simply 
yet  forcibly  expressed  it,  when,  having  been  condemned  to 
die  on  account  of  his  faith,  a  message  was  brought  in  the 
name  of  the  sovereign  to  the  effect  that  if  he  would  re- 
nounce his  religion  and  serve  the  queen,  not  only  should 
his  life  be  spared,  but  all  the  benefits  of  the  sovereign's  fa- 
vor should  be  bestowed,  he  thanked  the  queen  for  the  mes- 
sage, but  declared  he  could  not  forsake  Christ.  He  was 
not  insensible  to  the  advantages  offered,  though  the  queen's 
benefits  could  only  extend  to  this  life,  and  the  favor  of  his 


188  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vi. 

Savior  would  last  forever.  "  Yet,"  he  added,  "  I  can  serve 
the  queen."  The  answer  was  not  deemed  satisfactory,  and 
he  was  put  to  death. 

Had  the  authorities  or  the  people  in  general  understood 
and  appreciated  the  principles  and  character  of  the  Chris- 
tians, the  government  would  have  perceived  that  it  was 
cutting  the  sinews  of  its  strength  by  destroying  them,  and 
depriving  the  community  of  its  most  valuable  members. 
The  time  has,  perhaps,  not  yet  arrived  for  us  to  become  ac- 
quainted with  all,  or  even  with  the  principal  motives  by 
which  the  present  government  has  been  influenced;  but 
their  proceedings  have  developed  principles,  on  the  recog- 
nition of  which  depends  the  stability  of  all  human  organ- 
izations, and  have  afforded  illustrations  of  lessons  often 
taught  before,  and  which  are  of  the  deepest  interest  to  all 
concerned  for  the  liberties  and  the  well-being  of  mankind. 
"What  Nebuchadnezzar  attempted  on  the  plains  of  Dura, 
what  the  Eoman  emperor  attempted  in  the  days  of  Pliny, 
and  what  more  recent  rulers,  in  after  times,  have  attempted 
in  the  states  of  Europe,  has  in  our  tunes  been  attempted  in 
Madagascar,  modified,  it  may  be,  by  the  external  usages  of 
the  age  or  the  circumstances  of  the  people,  but  differing 
little  in  the  spirit,  the  agency,  or  the  end. 

With  the  results  of  the  past  we  are  acquainted ;  the  issue 
of  the  present,  though  admitting  of  no  doubt  either  to  the 
student  of  history  or  the  believer  in  revelation,  remains  yet 
to  be  disclosed.  Events  have  taken  place  in  the  present 
day  in  Madagascar  which  will  perhaps  exert  a  more  power- 
ful influence  than  has  yet  been  apparent  over  the  future  of 
that  people,  if  not  on  other  nations. 

More  than  twenty  years  have  passed  since  the  profession 
of  the  Christian  faith  was  publicly  prohibited  in  Madagas- 
car, and  during  this  period  every  available  means  have 
been  employed,  often  with  subtile  ingenuity  and  great  se- 
verity, to  enforce  the  prohibition.  Death  has  not  only  been 


CHAP.  vi.  VARIETIES  OF  PUNISHMENT.  189 

inflicted,  but,  in  the  preliminary  treatment  of  the  condemn- 
ed, and  in  the  manner  and  circumstances  of  their  punish- 
ment, it  has  been  an  object  to  augment  the  agony  of  their 
sufferings,  and  to  render  the  prospect  of  death  most  fright- 
fully appalling.  The  first  Christian  martyr  in  Madagascar 
suffered  in  1837,  the  second  in  the  following  year.  Three 
or  four  years  after,  nine  at  least  were  put  to  death,  in  such 
a  manner,  and  with  such  accompanying  circumstances,  as 
were  intended  to  involve  the  supposed  criminals  in  the 
deepest  ignominy.  In  the  year  1846  the  sufferings  of  the 
people  appear  to  have  been  great ;  but  the  severest  persecu- 
tion to  which  they  were  subjected,  and  in  which  the  greatest 
number  fell,  occurred  in  the  year  1849.  At  this  period  a 
few  saved  their  lives  by  escaping  from  the  island.  Some 
of  these  visited  our  country,*  and  all  eventually  found  an 
asylum  in  Mauritius.  Others,  I  was  informed,  who  had 
been  either  sentenced  to  die,  or  who  had  too  much  reason 
to  fear  that  if  seized  their  lives  would  be  forfeited,  escaped, 
and  either  remained  in  concealment  or  became  homeless 
wanderers  in  the  country. 

But,  besides  these,  multitudes,  probably  amounting  to 
thousands,  and  including  those  of  every  rank  and  age,  from 
the  unconscious  infant  who,  with  its  parents,  had  been  sold 
into  slavery,  to  the  venerable  sire  whose  long  life  had  been 
spent  in  the  service  of  his  country — or  from  the  noble, 
whose  rank  and  lineage  placed  him  near  the  throne,  to  the 
poor  and  friendless  slave — all  had  been  punished  for  sup- 
posed or  acknowledged  participation  in  the  reading  of  the 
Christian's  book  or  the  offering  of  the  Christian's  prayer. 
The  punishments  inflicted  had  been  almost  as  varied  as  the 
condition  or  the  circumstances  of  the  criminal.  The  tan- 
gena,  or  ordeal  of  poison-water,  had  frequently  been  ad- 

*  An  interesting  and  deeply-affecting  narrative  of  the  early  persecutions 
of  the  Christians  in  Madagascar,  published  in  London  in  1840,  by  the  late 
Messrs.  Freeman  and  Johns,  formerly  missionaries  in  the  island. 


190  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAT.  vi. 

ministered  with,  fatal  effects.  Fines  had  been  imposed,  from 
a  single  dollar  to  an  amount  equal  to  the  estimated  value 
at  which  a  delinquent  or  his  family  could  be  ransomed. 
Thus,  on  one  occasion,  a  prince  was  fined  100  dollars,  esti- 
mated at  half  his  redemption  price.  Confiscation  and  seiz- 
ure had  been  made  of  house  and  land,  and  of  every  kind 
of  property  belonging  to  the  accused.  Multitudes  were  re- 
duced to  slavery,  sold  in  the  public  markets,  and  subjected 
to  all  the  ordinary  miseries  resulting  from  separation  from 
their  nearest  relatives,  frequently  with  two  extra  conditions 
intended  to  enhance  the  bitterness  of  their  cup,  viz.,  that 
they  should  only  be  sold  to  those  who  would  engage  to 
make  them  labor  severely  and  continuously,  and  that  their 
relatives  or  friends  should  not  be  allowed  to  redeem  them, 
but  that  they  should  be,  as  it  was  expressed,  "  like  weeds 
of  the  waste,  bowing  down  their  heads  till  they  died." 
Among  the  communications  which  I  received  were  deeply- 
affecting  accounts  of  the  circumstances  of  some  who,  nine- 
teen years  before,  or  at  a  later  period,  had  been  sold  into 
slavery,  and  of  the  prices  which  had  been  paid  for  them  by 
their  purchasers.  Some  of  these  were  the  widows  of  those 
who  had  been  put  to  death,  some  were  single  men  or  wom- 
en, others  were  heads  of  families,  and  their  wives  and  chil- 
dren were  sold  with.  them.  The  prices  ranged  from  23  to 
90  dollars  for  a  single  individual,  and  from  110  dollars  for 
a  man  and  his  wife  to  178  for  a  man  and  three  children. 

Numbers,  not  sold  into  perpetual  slavery,  had  been  re- 
duced in  rank  and  sentenced  to  the  hardest  kind  of  labor, 
such  as  quarrying,  or  carrying  stones  for  the  erection  of 
government  buildings,  or  other  equally  severe  labor.  Sev- 
eral who,  though  of  considerable  rank,  had  for  a  long  time 
thus  labored,  and  some  among  them  who  have  since  carried 
to  their  graves  the  marks  of  their  punishments,  were  my 
frequent  visitors ;  others,  I  learned,  had  been  tortured  with 
stripes.  Some  had  been  sentenced  to  imprisonment,  and 


CHAP.  vi.  KECITAL  OF  CHARGES.  191 

were  then  in  confinement;  some  were  wandering  as  out- 
casts from  society;  others,  including  men  and  women  of 
rank  and  station,  had  been  loaded  with  rude  and  cumbrous 
fetters,  and  a  number  had  been  put  to  death. 

I  obtained  a  detailed  and  deeply-affecting  account,  writ- 
ten in  the  native  language,  with  the  substance  of  it  also  in 
English,  of  the  trials  of  the  Christians  in  1849,  the  period 
of  the  last  severe  persecution.  Numbers  were  informed 
against,  and  apprehended  by  officers  of  government  bearing 
a  silver  spear  designated  "  The  hater  of  lies,"  and  numbers, 
on  the  requisition  of  the  government,  acknowledged  their 
having  engaged  in  Christian  worship.  The  nature  of  their 
offense  may  be  inferred  from  the  subjoined  recital  of  the 
practices  of  which  they  were  accused  during  the  last  perse- 
cution. When  a  number  of  them  were  then  arraigned,  it 
was  asked  by  the  chief  officer,  "  What  is  this  that  you  do? 
This  that  the  queen  hates ;  that  which  says  believe  in  it  or 
him,  and  obey  the  Gospel;  refusing  to  fight  and  quarrel 
with  each  other;  refusing  to  swear  by  their  sisters  with  a 
stubbornness  like  that  of  stones  or  wood ;  observing  the 
Sabbath  as  a  day  of  rest;  the  taking  of  the  juice  of  the 
grape  and  a  little  bread,  and  invoking  a  blessing  on  the 
head,  and  then  falling  down  to  the  ground,  and  when  the 
head  is  raised  the  tears  running  down  from  the  eyes.  Now, 
are  you  to  do  these  things,  or  are  you  not  ?  for  such  things, 
it  is  said,  are  done  by  the  praying  people,  and  on  this  ac- 
count the  people  are  made  to  take  the  oath."  Then  Rama- 
ry  stood  up  before  the  people,  and  said,  "  I  believe  in  God, 
for  He  has  made  all  things,  and  I  follow  (or  believe)  the 
Gospel  of  God.  And  in  regard  to  fighting  or  quarreling, 
if  we,  who  are  one  people,  fight  and  quarrel  (among  our- 
selves), what  good  would  be  done  ?  But  if  the  enemies  of 
our  country  come,  the  servants  of  God  will  fight.  And  in 
regard  to  swearing,  if  the  truth  is  told,  does  swearing  make 
the  truth  a  lie  ?  And,  if  a  lie  is  told,  does  swearing  make 


192  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vi. 

the  lie  truth  ?  For  the  truth  is  truth,  and  a  lie  is  a  lie, 
whether  sworn  to  or  not.  I  put  my  trust  in  God,  and  in 
Jesus  Christ,  the  Savior  and  Eedeemer  of  all ;  He  is  able  to 
be  that  to  all  that  believe." 

Of  the  numbers  implicated  some  idea  may  be  formed 
from  the  fact  that,  at  one  time  and  at  one  place,  37  who 
had  explained  or  preached  the  Word  were  reduced  to  sla- 
very with  their  wives  and  children ;  42  who  had  possessed 
books  were  made  slaves,  and  their  property  seized ;  27  who 
had  possessed  books,  and  who  had  preached,  or  explained, 
were  made  slaves  with  their  wives  and  children;  6  with 
whom  it  was  a  second  offense  were  imprisoned;  2055  had 
paid  one  dollar  each ;  18  had  been  put  to  death :  14  hurled 
from  the  steep  rock,  and  4  burned  alive. 

Those  who  had  been  appointed  to  die  were  treated  with 
the  greatest  indignity.  They  were  wrapped  in  old  torn  or 
dirty  mats,  and  rags  were  stuffed  into  their  mouths.  Sev- 
enteen of  them  had  been  tied  each  along  a  pole,  and  had 
been  thus  carried  between  two  men  bearing  the  pole  on 
their  shoulders  to  the  place  where  sentence  was  to  be  pro- 
nounced. One  of  their  number,  being  a  young  female, 
walked  behind  the  rest.  Four  of  them,  being  nobles,  were 
not  killed  in  the  ordinary  way,  as  there  is  an  aversion  to  the 
shedding  of  the  blood  of  nobles ;  they  were  therefore  sen- 
tenced to  be  burned.  When  the  sentence  was  pronounced, 
some  derided,  and  the  condemned  were  then  carried  away 
to  the  places  of  execution.  The  four  nobles  were  burned 
alive  in  a  place  by  themselves.  Two  of  them,  viz.,  Andri- 
ampinery  and  Kamanandalana,  were  husband  and  wife,  the 
latter  expecting  to  become  a  mother.  At  the  place  of  exe- 
cution life  was  offered  them  if  they  would  take  the  required 
idolatrous  oath.  Declining  to  do  this,  they  were  bound,  and 
laid  on  the  pile  of  wood  or  placed  between  split  poles,  more 
wood  being  heaped  upon  them,  and  the  pile  was  then  kin- 
dled. Amid  the  smoke  and  blaze  of  the  burning  wood  the 


CHAP.  vi.  EXECUTIONS  IN  1849.  193 

pangs  of  maternity  were  added  to  those  of  an  agonizing 
death,  and  at  this  awful  moment  the  martyr's  child  was 
born.  I  asked  my  informants  what  the  executioners  or  by- 
standers did  with  the  babe :  they  answered,  "  Thrust  it  into 
the  flames,  where  its  body  was  burned  with  its  parents',  its 
spirit  to  ascend  with  theirs  to  God." 

The  remaining  fourteen  were  taken  to  a  place  of  common 
execution,  whither  a  number  of  felons  who  had  been  sen- 
tenced to  death  were  also  taken  to  be  executed  together 
with  the  Christians.  The  latter  were  put  to  death  by  being 
thrown  over  a  steep  precipice — the  Tarpeian  Eock  of  An- 
tananarivo. Each  one  was  suspended  by  a  cord  on  or  near 
the  edge  of  the  precipice,  and  there  offered  life  on  condition 
of  renouncing  Christ  and  taking  the  required  oaths.  Of 
these  there  was  one  who,  though  in  the  prospect  of  an  igno- 
minious, instant,  and  violent  death,  spoke  with  such  calm 
self-possession  and  humble  confidence  and  hope  of  the  near 
prospect  of  glory  and  immortal  blessedness,  as  very  deeply 
to  affect  those  around  him.  The  young  woman  who  had 
walked  to  the  place  of  execution  it  was  hoped  would  be  in- 
duced to  recant.  With  this  view  she  was,  according  to  or- 
ders, reserved  until  the  last,  and  placed  in  such  a  position 
as  to  see  all  the  others,  one  after  another,  hurled  over  the 
fatal  rock.  So  far  from  being  intimidated  she  requested  to 
follow  her  friends,  when  the  idol-keeper  present  struck  her 
on  the  face,  and  urged  her  to  take  the  oath  and  acknowl- 
edge the  idols.  She  refused,  and  begged  to  share  the  fate 
of  her  friends.  The  executioner  then  said,  "  She  is  an  idiot, 
and  does  not  know  what  she  says ;  take  her  away."  She 
was  then  taken  from  the  place,  and  afterward  sent  to  a  dis- 
tant part  of  the  country. 

These  fearful  deeds  of  blood  and  fire  were  perpetrated  in 
the  month  of  March,  1849,  and  I  did  not  learn  that  since 
that  period  persecution  had  been  so  violent  as  before,  or 
that  any  had  been  put  to  death. 

N 


194  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vi. 

Such  appear  to  be  some  of  the  more  prominent  outlines 
of  the  progress  of  Christianity  in  Madagascar  down  to  the 
period  above  specified.  Of  its  present  state  all  that  is  suit- 
able to  say  is,  that  there  is  much  to  call  forth  sincere  sym- 
pathy with*  the  sufferers,  to  stimulate  the  prayers  and  en- 
courage the  hopes  of  those  to  whom  its  progress  is  an  ob- 
ject of  interest  and  solicitude.  The  hostility  of  the  higher 
powers  to  the  Christian  religion  did  not,  from  all  I  saw  and 
heard,  appear  to  be  so  active  and  determined  as  formerly. 
This  might  be  in  part  accounted  for  by  the  combined  influ- 
ence of  several  events,  which,  in  the  course  of  Divine  Prov- 
idence, have,  since  that  period,  occurred.  Among  these 
might  be  mentioned  the  adoption  of  the  Christian  faith  by 
the  young  prince,  the  queen's  only  son,  and  the  heir  appar- 
ent to  the  throne.  This  important  event  took  place  ten 
years  ago,  and  has  been  followed  by  the  conversion  of  an- 
other member  of  the  royal  family,  who  has  since  become  a 
sincere  and  devoted  Christian.  Death,  also,  has  removed 
some  high  in  authority  and  influence  who  were  unfriendly 
to  the  Christians,  and  their  places  have  been  filled  by  oth- 
ers differently  minded ;  in  reference  to  one  of  whom  it  is 
said  that,  when  it  was  subsequently  urged  to  impose  a  sec- 
ond period  of  labor  as  a  penalty  upon  those  who  had  al- 
ready endured  their  sentence,  he  expostulated  and  said, 
"They  have  acknowledged  that  of  which  they  were  accused, 
they  have  been  sentenced  to  punishment  and  have  borne 
the  suffering  inflicted,  why  should  they  be  punished  again  ? 
the  thunderbolt  does  not  strike  twice."  It  does  not  appear 
that  there  is  any  change  in  the  purpose  of  the  supreme  au- 
thorities, as  the  following  message  or  order  is  said  to  be  read 
every  fortnight  to  the  troops  when  assembled  on  parade  at 
the  capital : 

"  If  any  baptize  (viz.,  administer  or  receive  baptism)  I 
will  put  them  to  death,  saith  Eanavalomanjaka;  for  they 
change  the  prayers  of  the  twelve  kings.  Therefore  search 


CHAP.  vi.  CLAIMS  OF  THE  CHRISTIANS  TO  SYMPATHY.      195 

and  spy,  and  if  ye  find  any  doing  that,  man  or  woman,  take 
them,  that  we  may  kill  them ;  for  I  and  you  will  kill  them 
that  do  that,  though  they  be  half  the  people.  For  to  change 
what  the  ancestors  have  ordered  and  done,  and  to  pray  to 
the  ancestors  of  the  foreigners,  not  to  Andrianampoineme- 
rina,  and  Lehidama,  and  the  idols  that  sanctified  the  twelve 
kings,  and  the  twelve  mountains  that  are  worshiped ;  who- 
ever changes  these  observances,  I  make  known  to  all  peo- 
ple, I  will  kill,  saith  Eanavalomanjaka." 

The  reference  made  to  the  usages  ordained  by  their  an- 
cestors, and  to  the  praying  to  the  ancestors  of  the  foreign- 
ers, explains  to  a  great  extent  the  grounds  on  which  the 
abandonment  of  the  religion  of  the  country,  and  adopting 
the  Christian  faith,  are  regarded  by  the  Malagasy  as  crimes 
of  the  greatest  magnitude.  Their  own  religious  creeds 
teach  them  to  regard  the  spirits  of  the  earliest  ancestors  of 
their  rulers  as  among  the  chief  objects  of  religious  homage, 
and  hence,  also,  a  sort  of  sacredness  is  supposed  to  belong 
to  the  reigning  monarch  as  descended  from  their  gods.  In 
most  of  the  public  speeches  to  which  I  listened  the  sacred- 
ness  of  the  queen's  person  was  declared,  and  she  was  repre- 
sented as  exercising  power  over  life  and  property  by  virtue 
of  such  descent  and  supposed  sacredness.  Thus  their  ideas 
of  religion  add  a  sort  of  sanctity  to  their  loyalty.  And  as 
they  infer  that  the  religion  of  Christian  nations  rests  upon 
a  basis  similar  to  their  own,  it  is  asserted,  and  probably  be- 
lieved by  many,  that  the  supreme  objects  of  Christian  wor- 
ship were  the  ancestors  of  the  present  rulers  of  those  na- 
tions ;  the  converts  to  Christianity  are  therefore  regarded  as 
guilty  of  the  double  crime  of  apostasy  and  treason ;  and  to 
persuade  their  countrymen  to  believe  in  the  Lord  Jesus,  to 
obey  His  word,  or  to  love  Him,  is  regarded  as  alienating 
the  confidence  and  affection  of  the  people  from  their  lawful 
rulers  and  transferring  them  to  the  ancestors  of  the  rulers 
of  foreigners.  Many  of  the  people  are  probably  too  much 


19G  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vi. 

enlightened  to  believe  that  their  early  ancestors  were  any 
thing  more  than  men,  but  others  believe  what  the  support- 
ers of  idolatry  teach,  and  use  the  popular  delusion  as  a 
ground  of  impeachment  against  the  Christians. 

The  immediate  future  of  Madagascar  is  known  only  to 
the  Almighty,  whose  attribute  it  is  to  behold  the  end  from 
the  beginning ;  but,  whatever  that  future  may  be,  there  is  in 
the  past  much,  very  much,  to  ponder  over  most  profoundly, 
much,  also,  to  enkindle  earnest  and  hearty  desires  that  a 
happier  day  may  soon  dawn  upon  that  important  country 
and  its  deeply-interesting  inhabitants,  and  that  the  minds 
of  the  rulers  may  be  enlightened  to  see  that  Christianity  af- 
fords the  surest  foundation  for  the  greatness  and  glory  of 
sovereigns  as  well  as  for  the  prosperity,  loyalty,  and  happi- 
ness of  nations. 


CHAP.  vn.  JOURNEY  FKOM  TAMATAVE  TO  FOULE  POINTE.  197 


CHAPTER  VII. 

Journey  from  Tamatave  to  Foule  Pointe. — Native  Gardens. — Photography 
in  the  Forest. — Novel  Aspects  of  the  Vegetation. — Native  Lodgings. — 
Malagasy  Travelers. — Abundant  and  beautiful  Orchidaceous  Plants. — 
Angracum  superbum. — A.  sesquipedale. — Native  Lizards  and  Birds. — 
Arrival  at  Foule  Pointe. — Native  Accommodations  and  Hospitality. — 
Pleasant  Intercourse  with  the  People. — Hospitality  of  the  Eesidents. — 
Interview  with  the  Governor.— Brief  Notice  of  Benyowsky.— Return  to 
Tamatave. — Last  Night  on  Shore. — Affectionate  Interest  of  the  Natives. 
— Early  Morning  Embarkation. — Last  View  of  the  Land. — Arrival  at 
Mauritius. — Departure  for  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope. 

AMONG  the  strangers  who  visited  Tamatave  during  my 
residence  there,  and  with  whom  I  held  frequent  intercourse, 
were  a  number  of  persons  from  Mahavelona  or  Foule  Pointe, 
a  port  on  the  eastern  coast,  about  forty -five  miles  to  the 
northward.  I  had  heard  repeatedly  of  the  fine  scenery  in 
the  intervening  region,  as  well  as  around  the  port  itself, 
and,  being  desirous  of  seeing  it,  as  well  as  of  visiting  the 
friends  with  whom  I  had  become  acquainted,  I  left  Tama- 
tave on  the  forenoon  of  the  4th  of  September,  accompanied 
by  my  tall  friend  from  the  capital,  who  had  spent  much 
time  with  me  at  Tamatave,  and  whose  wife's  father  was 
chief,  or  governor,  of  the  next  port  and  district  to  the  north- 
ward of  Foule  Pointe. 

An  officer  in  the  village,  my  friend  in  the  green  uniform, 
had  lent  me  a  sort  of  palanquin-chair,  of  strong  native  man- 
ufacture, resembling  an  ordinary  arm-chair  in  form,  only 
larger,  and  having  a  foot-board  suspended  in  front,  and  two 
long  poles  fixed  on  each  side  like  those  of  a  sedan-chair,  by 
which  it  was  carried  on  the  shoulders  of  four  men,  two  in 
front  and  two  behind.  Seated  in  this  chair,  and  thus  mount- 


198  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vn. 

ed  on  the  shoulders  of  the  bearers,  I  passed  through  the  vil- 
lage. Two  additional  bearers  were  provided  for  the  chair, 
two  others  carried  my  camera  and  photographic  apparatus, 
another  the  camera-stand  and  a  small  stool,  and  the  fourth 
my  carpet-bag,  a  tea-kettle,  and  some  crockery.  Among 
the  retinue  of  my  friend  was  the  bearer  of  rice,  and  of  meat 
purchased  in  the  market  that  morning.  As  soon  as  we  had 
left  the  village  the  men  set  off  at  a  short  kind  of  trotting 
pace,  in  which  the  bearers  kept  well  together  at  the  rate  of 
four  or  five  miles  an  hour.  They  continued  without  stop- 
ping for  about  three  hours,  when  we  reached  Vohidotra,  a 
scattered  sort  of  village  on  the  northern  side  of  a  tolerably 
broad  piece  of  water  having  an  outlet  to  the  sea. 

The  morning  had  been  fine,  the  sky  partially  covered 
with  clouds  which  tempered  the  heat.  Altogether  the  jour- 
ney was  unusually  pleasant.  The  verdure  of  the  plain,  and 
the  foliage  of  the  trees,  chiefly  the  pandanus,  or  vacoua,  ap- 
peared exceedingly  agreeable  and  refreshing  after  the  dry 
and  barren  sand  of  Tamatave.  At  Vohidotra  the  men  halt- 
ed to  rest  and  cook  their  rice,  and,  while  they  were  thus 
employed,!  sallied  forth  t(>the  adjacent  woods  to  look  for 
plants.  In  the  gardens  attached  to  the  cottages,  where 
French  beans,  garlic,  and  pumpkins  were  growing,  I  was 
surprised  to  see  beautiful  little  dwarf  plants  of  the  vinca  in 
full  blossom,  and  the  blue  Ageratum  Mexicanum,  so  care- 
fully tended  in  our  flower-borders,  covering  the  ground  and 
the  walks  between  the  beds  like  a  common  weed. 

After  walking  for  some  distance,  and  passing  one  or  two 
inclosed  spots  which  I  was  afterward  informed  were  burial- 
places,  I  entered  the  wooded  parts  of  the  district,  and  soon 
found  such  numbers  of  orchids,  growing  so  luxuriantly,  and 
in  such  picturesque  positions,  some  of  them  in  full  blossom, 
and  exhibiting,  too,  so  many  of  their  peculiarities  of  form 
and  habits  of  growth,  that  I  hastened  back  to  the  halting- 
place,  and  eagerly  asked  my  friend  how  much  longer  the 


6TEICIINOB-TREE,  WITH  OECHIDS   (\NGB.BCUM   BUPEBBITM)   GBOWTNG  ON  THE  TEUNK  ANT)  BBAXCITES. 
(CVCAB   CIECKNALIS)    IN   TUB   DISTANCE. 


CHAP.  vii.  LUXUKIANT  VEGETATION.  201 

men  would  remain  before  recommencing  their  journey.  As 
he  said  an  hour  or  so,  I  induced  one  of  them  to  accompany 
me  with  the  camera  to  the  wood,  and  having  selected  a 
couple  of  trees,  partially  covered  with  creepers,  and  bearing 
on  different  parts  of  their  trunks  or  branches  beautiful 
plants  of  Angrcccum  superbum  in  bloom,  and  surrounded  by 
ferns,  Alpinia  nutans,  and  other  species  of  tropical  vegeta- 
tion, I  fixed  the  camera  before  first  one  and  then  another, 
using  waxed  paper,  which  I  had  excited  in  the  morning  be- 
fore setting  out,  and  hoping  by  this  means  to  secure  a  me- 
morial of  the  beautiful  natural  objects  grouped  before  me. 
While  the  light  was  transferring  the  forms  of  the  trees  and 
the  flowers  to  the  paper  in  the  camera,  I  set  off  in  another 
direction,  penetrating  still  farther  into  the  wood,  in  search 
of  other  and  rarer  plants,  and  found  so  many  that,  though 
it  was  but  the  commencement  of  the  journey,  I  could  not 
refrain  from  gathering  a  bundle  to  carry  on  to  the  place 
where  we  expected  to  halt  for  the  night.  On  returning,  I 
found  the  men  who  were  my  bearers  gathered  round  the 
camera  ready  to  proceed ;  and  was  perfectly  relieved  from 
any  apprehension  about  their  having  been  overtasked,  ei- 
ther with  the  length  of  their  journey  or  the  weight  of  their 
load,  by  perceiving  one  or  two  of  them,  tall,  athletic,  swarthy 
fellows,  standing  on  their  heads,  and  amusing  themselves 
and  their  companions  by  kicking  their  heels  up  in  the  air. 
After  stopping  altogether  about  two  hours,  we  resumed 
our  journey.  Our  road,  or,  rather,  narrow  winding  foot- 
path, for  no  vehicles  ever  traveled  along  it,  now  turned  to- 
ward the  mountains,  and  passed  over  a  slightly-undulated 
verdant  country,  generally  covered  with  masses  of  shrubs, 
or  small  trees.  The  bearers  seemed  invigorated  with  their 
rest  and  refreshment,  and  trotted  along  apparently  in  cheer- 
ful spirits.  I  noticed  that  whenever  any  one  of  the  bearers 
wished  to  ease  his  shoulder,  he  struck  the  pole  with  the 
palm  of  his  hand,  producing  a  sort  of  hollow  sound ;  when 


202  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAI-.  vn. 

his  companions  each  seized  his  pole,  and,  lifting  it  over  his 
head,  brought  it  down  upon  the  opposite  shoulder.  Some- 
times all  four  of  the  bearers  changed  at  the  same  time,  but 
more  frequently  only  the  two  who  were  together,  either  in 
front  or  behind. 

Many  new  forms  of  vegetation  presented  themselves 
through  this  day's  journey.  Among  those  bordering  the 
coast,  the  acacia,  the  casuarina,  and  the  pandanus  were 
most  abundant,  with  occasionally  a  group  of  sago-trees  or  a 
solitary  cocoanut  towering  above  the  rest.  I  had  seen 
nothing,  either  in  Mauritius  or  Polynesia,  resembling  them 
— especially  one  kind  seldom  attaining  above  ten  or  twelve 
feet  in  height,  a  kind  of  pandanus,  having  a  number  of 
leaves  in  the  centre  of  the  crown,  apparently  glued  or  stuck 
together  at  their  extremities,  giving  to  the  centre  or  crown 
a-  singular  form ;  while  the  disentangled  leaves  that  stretch- 
ed out  horizontally  or  hung  down  parallel  with  the  stem 
seemed  very  much  like  the  leaves  with  which  the  Chinese 
line  their  tea-chests.  I  could,  however,  only  notice  the  pe- 
culiarities of  this  tree  as  we  passed  along ;  and  I  failed  to 
fulfill  my  intention  of  procuring  seeds  or  leaves  at  some  fu- 
ture time.  Another  species  of  pandanus  was  to  me  equally 
new  and  remarkable.  The  stem  of  this  was  straight  as  that 
of  a  fir-tree,  and  the  branches  horizontal  with  feathery  tips 
of  flag  or  short  ribbon-formed  leaves.  The  tree  was  fre- 
quently forty  or  fifty  feet  high,  crowned  with  an  upright 
plume,  and  at  a  distance  might  have  been  mistaken  for  a 
larch,  but  for  its  stuT  and  formal  growth.  I  did  not  see  it 
near  the  shore,  but  among  the  low  wet  places  inland.  I 
had  no  opportunity  of  examining  it  minutely,  but  was  told 
it  was  indigenous :  it  is  probably  Pandanus  muricatus,  called 
at  Mauritius  Vacoua  en  pyramids. 

But  the  most  remarkable  objects  on  this  day's  journey 
were  the  vast  numbers  of  that  splendid  production  of  Mad- 
agascar, the  Urania  speciosa,  or  Traveler's-tree.  It  is  not 


CHAP.  vii.  CULINARY  OPERATIONS.  203 

easy  to  imagine,  still  less  to  describe,  the  appearance  of  a 
somewhat  distant  and  oval-shaped  mountain  crested  along 
its  summit,  as  it  appeared  to  us  on  one  part  of  the  way,  by 
these  stately  trees,  looking  like  a  long  line  of  gigantic  In- 
dian sachems,  with  their  helmets  of  radiated  feathers  shown 
in  strongly-marked  outline  against  the  western  sky. 

It  was  dark  before  we  reached  Eangazava,  a  small  vil- 
lage by  the  sea-side,  where  we  halted  for  the  night.  One 
room,  about  twenty  or  twenty-five  feet  square,  the  whole 
inside  of  a  native  house,  served  the  purposes  of  sitting-room, 
sleeping-room,  and  kitchen.  Here  I  developed  the  pictures 
I  had  taken  on  my  way,  and  found  them*  come  out  tolera- 
bly well.  In  the  mean  time  a  fire  was  kindled  between 
stones  fixed  on  a  heap  of  sand,  the  edges  of  which  were 
kept  up  by  pieces  of  wood.  A  large,  shallow,  round  earth- 
en pot  was  then  put  on  to  boil  rice  in,  and  a  piece  of  beef, 
which  we  had  brought  with  us,  spitted  on  a  stick,  was  fixed 
by  the  side  of  the  fire  to  roast  or  broil.  As  soon  as  the  rice 
was  cooked  the  tea-kettle  was  put  on,  and  by  the  time  it 
boiled  the  meat  was  cooked.  I  was  amused  to  see  the  in- 
terest and  aptitude  with  which  my  friend,  a  portly  chief 
more  than  six  feet  high,  overlooked  and  directed  the  cook- 
ing of  the  evening  meal. 

After  supper  the  chief  gave  me  a  clean  mat,  and,  taking 
off  my  shoes  and  using  my  carpet-bag  for  a  pillow,  I  lay 
down  to  rest,  and,  though  for  a  time  the  smoke  affected  my 
eyes,  I  obtained  a  few  hours'  sleep. 

By  five  o'clock  the  next  morning  we  were  stirring,  and 
on  our  journey  again  before  six.  Our  road  this  morning 
continued  for  the  first  eight  or  ten  miles  along  the  edge  of 
the  sea.  Traveling  here  appeared  exceedingly  fatiguing. 
The  men's  feet  sank  deep  into  the  sand  at  every  step,  ex- 
cept when  they  walked  close  to  the  water,  where  the  foot- 
ing was  firmer ;  but  here  they  were  sometimes  above  their 
knees  in  water  before  they  could  get  out  of  the  way  when 


204:  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  vn. 

the  billows  broke  in  foam  and  spray  upon  the  rocky  beach. 
The  rocks,  in  some  places,  seemed  to  be  crystal  or  quartz ; 
occasionally,  also,  there  were  fragments  of  coral.  Numbers 
of  small  crabs  and  other  fish,  apparently  searching  for  food 
along  the  edge  of  the  sea,  were  startled  into  deeper  water 
by  our  approach.  We  saw  also  here  and  there  a  few  na- 
tives digging  for  a  larger  kind  of  crab  in  the  sand  along 
the  higher  parts  of  the  beach.  About  half  past  eight  we 
reached  a  broad  stream,  across  which  we  were  ferried  in 
canoes,  and  soon  afterward  arrived  at  Ifotsy,  where  we 
stopped  to  take  breakfast. 

Besuming  our  journey,  we  crossed  two  rivers  in  the 
course  of  the  day,  both  deep ;  over  one  of  them,  at  Sakon- 
dro,  a  rustic  kind  of  bridge,  skirted  by  trees,  presented  so 
complete  a  picture  of  woodland  and  water,  bank  and  bridge, 
that  I  requested  the  men  so  to  arrange  their  journey  on 
our  return  that  we  might  stop  at  this  place,  intending,  if 
possible,  to  obtain  a  photographic  view  of  the  scene.  The 
other  was  of  considerable  width,  in  some  parts  so  deep  that 
we  could  only  cross  it  in  canoes.  Two  or  three  houses 
stood  near  the  bank,  where  my  bearers  set  me  down,  and 
the  master  of  one  of  them  invited  me  to  enter.  I  followed 
him,  and  found  several  travelers  either  waiting  to  cross  the 
river  or  resting  on  their  journey. 

Canoes  for  ferrying  passengers  across  the  rivers  appear 
to  be  provided  by  the  government  or  the  chiefs  of  the  dis- 
trict. Once  or  twice  we  had  to  wait  until  parties  who  had 
arrived  at  the  water's  edge  before  us  had  all  been  ferried 
over,  and  travelers  who  arrived  while  we  were  passing  had 
to  wait  until  we  had  crossed.  With  only  one  canoe  it 
sometimes  required  two  or  three  trips  to  carry  us  all  over, 
and  yet  no  backwardness  was  manifested  by  the  ferrymen, 
to  whom  the  passengers  generally  gave  a  small  quantity  of 
rice  for  their  trouble. 

Both  on  this  and  the  previous  day  we  passed  many  trav- 


CHAP.  vii.  MODES  OF  TKAVELING.  205 

-» 

elers,  though  few  journeyed  singly.  Mostly  two  or  three, 
and  more  frequently  a  large  party,  traveled  in  company. 
The  chiefs  were  carried  by  four  men  in  open  palanquins,  in 
which  they  sometimes  reclined  pretty  nearly  at  full  length. 
A  mother  and  her  infant  were  in  one  of  these  palanquins, 
attended  by  several  females,  who  ran  along  by  the  side. 
One  or  two  travelers  we  passed  in  a  sort  of  temporary  lit- 
ter, made  by  fastening  a  piece  of  rofia-cloth  in  the  form  of 
a  hammock  to  a  single  pole,  carried  on  the  shoulders  of  two 
men,  the  chief  sitting  sideways  in  the  hammock,  and  rest' 
ing  his  arms  on  the  pole  to  which  the  ends  of  the  hammock 
were  fastened.  Sometimes  we  passed  what  seemed  to  be  a 
whole  family,  comprising  adults,  children,  and  slaves.  The 
chief  usually  carried  a  spear  or  staff,  or  both.  The  bur- 
dens, whether  of  matting,  clothing,  or  provisions,  carried 
by  the  slaves,  were  not  borne  on  the  head,  as  is  the  uniform 
practice  of  the  Coolies  or  Creoles  of  Mauritius,  but  were 
fastened  at  the  back,  and  the  children,  when  too  young  to 
walk,  were  carried  in  the  same  manner.  Few  appeared  to 
be  loiterers  on  the  road,  but  all  were  passing  along  at  a 
tolerably  quick  pace.  None  of  the  parties  were  much  en- 
cumbered with  personal  luggage ;  but  the  loads  of  rice, 
and  similar  articles,  carried  by  some  of  the  slaves  appeared 
heavy. 

Besides  the  Traveler's -tree,  often  the  chief  growth  of 
vast  tracts  of  the  country,  I  noticed  another  tree  of  large 
and  shining  foliage,  like  that  of  the  magnolia,  and  occasion- 
ally a  large-leaved  betonica.  The  Calophyllum  inophyllurn, 
or  other  species  of  gum-tree,  imparted  a  rich  and  varied 
character  to  the  scenery.  Near  the  water,  at  two  places 
where  we  halted,  I  found  the  Hibiscus  tiliaceus  growing  to  a 
great  size,  straggling  over  a  considerable  space,  and  cov- 
ered with  large  yellow  and  claret-colored  blossoms.  The 
only  difference  I  could  perceive  between  the  specimens  I 
met  with  in  this  island  and  those  with  which  I  have  been 


206  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vii. 

* 

familiar  in  the  South  Seas,  consisted  in  the  Madagascar 
plants  exhibiting  a  more  robust  habit  of  growth  and  rath,- 
er  larger  as  well  as  more  darkly-tinted  flowers.  In  all 
other  respects  the  plants  appeared  identical. 

Orchids  were  abundant,  and  often  occupied  positions  in 
which  the  growers  of  these  plants  in  England  would  little 
expect  to  find  them,  but  in  which  they  gave  an  indescrib- 
able singularity  and  charm  to  the  landscape.  The  limodo- 
rums  were  numerous  in  parts  of  the  road,  and  formed  quite 
a  ball  of  interlaced  roots  at  the  base  of  the  bulbs.  A  small 
species,  resembling  in  habit  and  growth  the  Camarotus  pur- 
purea,  but  quite  unknown  to  me,  and  bearing  a  vast  profu- 
sion of  white  and  sulphur-tinted  flowers,  often  enlivened 
the  sides  of  the  road  along  which  we  passed.  But  the  an- 
grsecums,  both  A.  superbum  and  A.  sesquipedale,  were  the 
most  abundant  and  beautiful.  I  noticed  that  they  grew 
most  plentifully  on  trees  of  thinnest  foliage,  and  that  the 
A.  sesquipedale  was  seldom,  if  ever,  seen  on  the  ground,  but 
grew  high  up  among  the  branches,  often  throwing  out  long 
straggling  stems  terminating  in  a  few  small  and  often  appar- 
ently shriveled  leaves.  The  roots  also  partook  of  the*  same 
habit.  »  They  were  seldom  branched  or  spreading,  but  long, 
tough,  and  single,  sometimes  running  down  the  branch  or 
trunk  of  a  tree,  between  the  fissures  in  the  rough  bark,  to 
the  length  of  twelve  or  fifteen  feet ;  and  so  tough  and  tena- 
cious that  it  required  considerable  force  to  detach  or  break 
them.  Many  of  them  were  in  flower ;  and,  notwithstand- 
ing the  small,  shriveled  appearance  of  the  leaves,  the  flow- 
ers were  large  and  the  yellow  color  strongly  marked.  On 
more  than  one  occasion  I  saw  a  splendid  Angrcecum  sesqui- 
pedale growing  on  the  trunk  of  a  decaying  or  fallen  tree,  as 
shown  in  the  accompanying  engraving,  and  sending  its 
tough  roots  down  the  trunk  to  the  moist  parts  of  the  vege- 
tation on  the  ground.  I  found  one  decayed  tree  lying  on 
the  ground  almost  overgrown  with  grass  and  ferns,  on  the 


HABITS  OF  THE  ANGR^ECUM. 


207 


rotten  trunk  of  which,  the  A.  sesquipedale  was  growing  most 
luxuriantly.  The  roots  which  had  penetrated  the  soft 
trunk  of  this  dead  tree  were  white  and  fleshy,  while  the 
leaves  were  longer  and  comparatively  soft  and  green. 
There  were  neither  flowers  nor  flower-stalks  on  any  of  the 
plants  growing  in  the  rich  vegetable  mould  furnished  by 
this  old  dead  tree. 


AXUR£CUM   SESQUIPEDALE  AND  NATIVE  FERNS. 

The  habits  of  the  superbum  were  quite  different.  Of 
these  the  fleshy  roots  formed  a  sort  of  net- work  at  the  base 
of  the  bulb.  During  the  journey  I  occasionally  noticed 
both  kinds  growing  not  only  on  the  branches  of  living 
trees  but  very  often  high  up  on  the  bare  barked  trunks  of 
the  dead  trees.  Sometimes,  in  the  angle  formed  by  the 


208  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vn. 

junction  of  an  arm  with,  the  trunk  of  a  large  naked  tree, 
apparently  without  a  fragment  of  bark  adhering  to  the 
trunk,  a  bunch  of  moss,  or  a  cluster  of  orchids,  or  both 
mingled  together,  would  be  growing  apparently  with  great 
vigor,  and  often  in  full  flower.  More  than  one  tall  bare 
trunk,  twelve  or  eighteen  inches  in  diameter  and  thirty 
feet  high,  stood  surmounted,  or  surrounded  near  its  sum- 
mit, by  a  cluster  of  angraecums,  with  their  long,  sword- 
shaped,  fleshy  leaves ;  or,  what  was  more  beautiful  still,  a 
fine  specimen  of  some  species  of  bird's-nest  fern.  The  con- 
trast between  the  white,  shining,  barkless  trunk  and  these 
verdant  clusters  of  plants  on  the  top  was  sometimes  very 
striking;  especially  as  the  orchids  were  often  in  flower, 
and  by  their  growth  altogether  suggested  the  idea  that  by 
the  decay  of  their  own  roots  a  receptacle  was  formed  for 
the  moisture  or  the  rain  by  which  the  plant  was  nourished. 
This  combination  of  life  and  death,  growth  and  decay,  pre- 
sented one  of  the  most  singular  among  the  many,  to  me, 
new  and  curious  aspects  of  nature  which  my  journey  af- 
forded. 

I  saw  few  animals  except  lizards,  of  which  there  were 
great  numbers  among  the  stones  and  trees,  some  of  the 
richest  emerald  green,  others  speckled  or  marked  in  lines, 
but  the  greatest  portion  were  of  a  lightish  brown.  Birds 
were  comparatively  numerous,  and  there  were  some  of  gay 
and  attractive  plumagel  The  largest  was  a  compact-shaped, 
lively  bird,  apparently  the  black-throated  crow  shrike.  On 
the  trunks  of  the  trees  I  observed  some  resembling  wood- 
peckers ;  also  a  handsome  bird  about  the  size  of  a  jay,  re- 
sembling some  kinds  of  the  butcher-bird ;  its  plumage  red, 
brown,  and  yellow.  Far  from  being  shy  or  disturbed  by  our 
approach,  they  seemed  rather  to  welcome  us ;  as  I  noticed 
that  one  or  two  about  the  size  of  a  thrush,  with  green  and 
white  feathers,  kept  for  a  long  time  flying  in  the  line  of 
our  progress,  alighting  on  a  bush  by  the  side  of  our  path, 


CHAP.  vn.          THE  VILLAGE  OF  FOULE  POINTS.  209 

and,  when  we  reached  the  spot,  then  flying  on  farther  in 
advance.  One  kind,  which  the  natives  called  Eailovi,  par- 
ticularly attracted  my  notice.  It  was  rather  larger  than  a 
blackbird  and  much  longer  in  the  neck  and  tail ;  the  plum- 
age of  a  glossy  purplish  black ;  the  feathers  of  the  tail 
deeply  indented  in  the  middle,  and,  just  above  where  the 
beak  was  united  to  the  head,  two  curved  feathers,  an  inch 
long,  arose,  one  on  each  side,  giving  the  bird  a  singular  but 
not  ungraceful  appearance.  Occasionally  we  saw  flocks  of 
what  appeared  to  be  paroquets;  but  these  did  not  come 
very  near  us. 

A  little  before  sunset,  on  the  second  day  of  our  journey, 
I  reached  the  broad  plain  on  which  the  village  of  Foule 
Pointe  is  situated,  and  here  I  halted  until  my  friend,  who 
had  traveled  more  slowly  than  my  bearers,  arrived.  The 
high  wooded  country  from  which  we  emerged  afforded  a 
good  view  of  the  settlement,  which,  in  extent  of  land  and 
eligibility  of  situation,  appeared  greatly  superior  to  Tama- 
tave.  On  the  southern  side  of  the  buildings  and  inclosures 
a  line  of  fine  stately  mango-trees,  clothed  at  this  time  of 
the  year  with  dense  dark  foliage,  gave  quite  a  baronial  as- 
pect to  the  approach  in  that  direction.  The  houses  of  the 
village,  which  differ  little  from  those  of  Tamatave,  spread 
along  the  southeastern  side  of  the  bay,  near  the  southern 
extremity  of  which  two  vessels  from  Mauritius  were  per- 
forming quarantine.  One  or  two  streams  intersected  the 
plain,  which  is  more  than  a  mile  across ;  and  in  several  di- 
rections slaves  with  bundles  of  fire-wood,  or  laborers  re- 
turning from  the  fields,  were  wending  their  way  along  the 
different  paths  which  led  to  their  places  of  abode. 

When  my  companion  arrived,  we  proceeded  to  the  vil- 
lage, and,  passing  between  the  truly  magnificent  line  of 
trees,  entered  the  court-yard  of  my  friend,  who  was  an  offi- 
cer in  the  place.  Here  I  was  preparing  to  alight,  but,  be- 
fore being  aware,  was  carried  quite  into  the  house,  where  I 

0 


210  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  vn. 

•was  cordially  welcomed.  One  of  my  attendants  was  com- 
pletely loaded  with  the  specimens  of  plants  which  I  had 
gathered  during  the  journey,  and  which  I  now  deposited 
in  one  of  the  large  trees  for  security.  The  house  was  well 
built  with  native  materials.  It  contained  two  good  rooms, 
boarded  floor,  door,  and  windows  with  shutters,  but  no  glass. 
It  had  a  large  kind  of  kitchen  with  fire-place  outside,  and 
also  a  fire-place  in  the  smaller  or  inner  room,  which  seem- 
ed to  be  a  sort  of  store-room  and  cooking-place,  as  well  as 
sleeping-room.  In  one  corner  was  a  small  bed  on  a  frame 
like  a  stretcher.  Around  the  head  of  the  bed,  fire-arms, 
swords,  and  warlike  accoutrements  were  placed.  On  one 
side  of  the  room  stood  some  boxes,  on  the  other  was  the 
fire-place,  and  in  other  parts  were  bags  of  rice  or  millet,  bas- 
kets of  beans,  with  various  tools,  agricultural  implements, 
and  other  valuable  stores.  The  corner  containing  the  bed 
was  pointed  out  as  my  quarters,  and  I  took  possession  by 
placing  there  my  carpet-bag  and  photographic  apparatus. 
Many  of  the  friends  of  my  host,  and  others  whom  I  had 
seen  at.Tamatave,  soon  came  in  with  repeated  expressions 
of  welcome,  and,  after  a  good  wash  and  a  hearty  supper,  we 
spent  the  time  very  agreeably  together,  observing  usages 
which  would  not  have  been  neglected  at  home.  One  of 
those  present  had  spent  some  time  at  Mauritius,  and  knew 
a  little  English ;  two  others  spoke  French ;  so  that  we  cquld 
communicate  with  each  other  much  better  than  was  some- 
tunes  the  case.  My  inquiries  related  to  their  past  and  pres- 
ent circumstances,  and  the  promptitude  and  cheerfulness  of 
their  replies  left  me  no  reason  to  fear  that  my  inquiries 
were  unwelcome.  They,  on  the  other  hand,  had  many  deep- 
ly-interesting questions  to  ask,  more  particularly  about  the 
religious  belief  and  practices  in  England,  which  I  endeavor- 
ed to  answer  to  the  best  of  my  ability ;  and  thus,  notwith- 
standing the  fatigue  of  the  day,  so  gratifying  and  joyous 
was  the  circumstance  of  our  meeting  together,  that  it  was 
long  past  midnight  before  we  retired  to  rest. 


CHAP.  vii.  NOTICE  OF  BAKON  BENYOWSKY.  211 

In  subsequently  recurring  to  the  long  evening  thus  pleas- 
antly passed,  I  was  naturally  led  to  reflect  on  the  deep  and 
peculiar  sympathy  which  we  all  seemed  to  feel.  We  were 
inhabitants  of  different  hemispheres,  and  belonged  to  com- 
munities widely  separated  from  each  other  by  their  relative 
civilization  and  social  position;  yet  we  met  and  conferred 
together  with  a  degree  of  confidence,  satisfaction,  and  even 
enjoyment,  as  entire  and  sincere  as  if  we  had  been  long 
united  in  the  closest  human  fellowship ;  and  we  felt  that  we 
cherished  aspirations  as  identical  as  if  we  were  ultimately 
to  be  gathered  into  one  common  home.  We  know  that 
sympathy  so  entire  and  uniform  under  all  the  diversities  of 
external  condition,  and  so  widely  diffused,  can  spring  from 
only  one  source,  and  is  only  perpetuated  by  one  divine  in- 
fluence ;  and  it  is  a  source  of  unspeakable  pleasure  to  feel 
that  it  not  only  brings  with  it  a  present  enjoyment,  but 
will  ultimately  unite  the  estranged  and  separated  members 
of  the  human  family  in  one  hallowed  bond  of  brotherhood 
and  peace. 

This  was  one  of  the  ports  by  which  Eadama,  after  the 
abolition  of  the  slave-trade,  endeavored  to  connect  the  for- 
eign commerce  of  the  country  with  his  capital,  and  for  this 
purpose  he  sent,  in  1823,  two  thousand  persons  to  Foule 
Pointe  to  form  an  agricultural  and  commercial  settlement, 
under  Eafaralahy,  an  enlightened  and  energetic  prince,  who 
spent  some  time  at  Mauritius,  and  whose  administration  was 
eulogized  by  Sir  E.  Farquhar,  when  he  visited  the  port. 

Foule  Pointe  has  also  been  the  scene  of  some  remarkable 
events  in  the  earlier  history  of  the  people.  It  was  one  of 
the  outlying  factories  of  the  French  establishment  formed 
at  Antongil  Bay,  in  1774,  by  the  Baron  Benyowsky.  The 
career  of  this  remarkable  man  was  characterized  by  events 
the  most  startling  and  extraordinary ;  and  that  the  same  in- 
dividual should  be  at  one  time  the  prisoner  of  Eussia  in  Si- 
beria, and  then  a  trader  in  China — that  he  should  afterward 


212  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vn. 

be  acknowledged  as  a  lineally-descended  sovereign  in  Mad- 
agascar, and  be  sent  by  authorities  in  that  island  to  treat 
for  alliances  with  the  sovereigns  of  Europe,  and  should 
finally  be  shot  as  a  rebel  by  the  French,  seems  more  like 
romance  than  reality ;  yet  such  were  some  of  the  striking 
contrasts  of  his  life.  Descended  from  Polish  ancestors,  but 
born  in  Hungary,  he  served  as  a  general  in  the  armies  of 
Eussia  till  after  the  death  of  the  King  of  Poland  in  1765, 
when  he  joined  the  army  in  Cracow,  where  he  was  captured 
by  the  Russians  and  banished  to  Siberia.  Here  he  induced 
a  number  of  others  to  join  in  an  attempt  to  escape,  in 
which  he  succeeded;  attacked  Kamtschatka,  seized  three 
Eussian  vessels  with  their  cargoes,  dismasted  the  rest,  and 
sailed  with  his  companions  to  China,  where  he  sold  his  ves- 
sels and  cargoes.  From  Macao  he  proceeded  in  French 
trading- vessels  to  Mauritius,  then  occupied  by  the  French, 
where  his  attention  was  directed  to  Madagascar.  Sailing 
from  Mauritius  to  France,  he  was  appointed,  some  time  aft- 
er his  arrival,  to  undertake  the  formation  of  a  French  estab- 
lishment in  Madagascar.  A  corps  entitled  the  Volunteers 
of  Benyowsky  was  enrolled,  officers  appointed,  and  he  sail- 
ed to  Mauritius.  The  authorities  there  were  opposed  to  the 
projected  establishment,  and,  as  he  was  dependent  on  them 
for  supplies,  he  experienced  considerable  disappointment 
and  delay.  At  length  he  reached  Madagascar,  where  he 
met  with  a  friendly  reception  from  the  chiefs,  whom  he  in- 
formed that  the  King  of  France  had  decided  on  forming  an 
establishment  in  their  country  to  defend  them  from  their 
enemies,  and  to  open  warehouses  for  trade.  He  fixed  his 
chief  settlement  at  Antongil  Bay,  using  Foule  Pointe  as  one 
of  his  outstations  or  factories.  The  military  force  he  had 
brought,  the  trade  he  offered,  together  with  the  industry, 
ability,  and  force  of  character  which  he  manifested,  secured 
him  such  influence  as  to  induce  the  chiefs  in  that  part  of  the 
island  to  enter  into  alliance  with  him,  and  inspired  hopes 


CHAP.  vn.  NOTICE  OF  BARON  BENYOWSKY.  213 

of  ultimate  success  ;  but  the  representations  of  the  author- 
ities of  Mauritius  induced  the  French  government  to  send 
out  a  commission  of  inquiry,  and,  after  they  had  completed 
their  task,  Benyowsky  resigned  his  commission  and  retired 
from  the  settlement  and  the  service  of  France. 

Before  this  time  a  report  had  been  circulated  by  an  old 
female  slave  from  Mauritius  that  Benyowsky  was  the  son 
of  a  sovereign  of  that  part  of  the  country,  who  had  in  for- 
mer times  been  carried  thither.  The  chiefs  and  people  pre- 
tended to  believe  this  report,  and  Benyowsky  does  not  ap- 
pear to  have  undeceived  them.  Under  this  impression  they 
requested  him  to  assume  the  office  and  duties  of  their  ruler. 
Ho  had  previously  intimated  his  willingness  to  accede  to 
their  wishes,  and,  being  now  free  from  his  engagement  with 
the  French,  he  was  shortly  afterward,  in  a  large  public  as- 
sembly of  chiefs  and  people,  and  amid  much  form  and  cer- 
emony, proclaimed  sovereign  of  the  tribes  inhabiting  Maha- 
velona  and  the  adjacent  country,  and  received  their  oath  of 
allegiance.  On  the  evening  of  the  same  day,  three  hundred 
females  came  by  moonlight  to  Madame  Benyowsky  to  take 
the  oath  of  allegiance  to  her  as  their  queen. 

The  next  day  the  new  sovereign  held  his  first  kabary  or 
grand  assembly,  and  presented  the  constitution  and  form  of 
government,  which  they  adopted.  Benyowsky  afterward 
proceeded  to  Europe,  with  authority  from  the  people  of  Ma- 
havelona  and  the  adjacent  country  to  treat  with  the  King 
of  France  or  any  other  nation,  to  form  commercial  and 
friendly  alliances.  Failing  in  these  objects  with  the  French, 
he  applied  to  the  Imperial  government,  and  afterward  to 
the  English,  but,  being  unsuccessful,  he  purchased  a  ship, 
sailed  to  North  America  with  a  cargo  for  Madagascar,  and 
having  there  obtained  a  second  vessel  he  proceeded  to  Mad- 
agascar. On  reaching  the  neighborhood  of  Antongil  Bay 
he  seized  a  store-house  belonging  to  the  French,  and  was 
only  deterred  from  attempting  to  take  the  factory  at  Foule 


2H  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vn. 

Pointe  by  the  presence  of  a  French  vessel  of  war.  As  soon 
as  these  proceedings  became  known  at  Mauritius  a  frigate 
with  sixty  men  was  sent  against  him.  On  the  arrival  of 
the  ship  his  fort  was  attacked,  and  he  was  killed  by  the  fire 
of  the  advancing  troops  in  1786,  twelve  years  after  his  first 
arrival  in  the  island. 

The  slave-trade  and  the  wars  which  have  subsequently 
desolated  this  part  of  Madagascar  have  almost  annihilated 
the  tribes  with  whom  Benyowsky  was  associated,  and  I 
heard  of  no  traditions  of  him  among  the  present  inhabit- 
ants. Very  different  estimates  have  been  formed  of  the 
character  and  proceedings  of  this  extraordinary  man.  The 
record  he  has  left  of  his  own  purposes  and  plans  lead  to 
the  inference  that  his  views  were  in  advance  of  the  age; 
and,  without  attempting  to  justify  his  slave -dealing,  his 
conniving  at  the  unfounded  report  of  his  origin,  or  other 
parts  of  his  proceedings,  his  treatment  of  the  Malagasy  was 
more  enlightened  and  just  than  that  of  most  Europeans 
who  had  visited  their  shores,  while  his  attempts  to  abolish 
infant-murder  and  introduce  other  ameliorations  of  social 
life  indicate  the  exercise  of  humane  feelings.  I  had,  soon 
after  my  visit  to  Foule  Pointe,  an  opportunity  of  inspecting 
several  documents  in  his  own  handwriting,  some  of  which 
contain  gratifying  evidence  of  a  benevolent  disposition. 

"While  staying  at  this  place  I  walked  over  some  exceed- 
ingly well-stocked  and  cultivated  gardens  belonging  to  the 
gentleman  at  whose  house  I  had  been  entertained.  Many 
useful  European  vegetables  were  growing  here  remarkably 
well,  in  a  soil  light,  rich,  and  well  watered.  The  low  level 
flat  on  which  the  settlement  stands,  the  dampness  of  the 
ground,  and  the  abundance  of  water,  though  favorable  to 
the  growth  of  garden  and  other  produce,  seemed  likely  to 
render  Foule  Pointe  less  healthy  than  the  comparatively 
dry  situation  of  Tamatave.  The  vegetation  around  the 
bay  was  extremely  luxuriant,  and  I  do  not  remember  ever 


CHAP.  vn.        INTERVIEW  WITH  THE  GOVERNOR.  215 

having  seen  finer  cocoanut-trees  than  those  growing  near 
the  water  on  the  southern  side.  Some  small  tame  animals 
with  ringed  tails,  like  the  raccoon,  and  some  black  and  white 
lemurs,  were  the  only  animals  of  any  considerable  size 
which  I  saw  here ;  but  I  noticed  some  large  and  very  beau- 
tiful lizards,  dark  green  and  yellow,  of  greater  size  and 
more  plump  than  any  I  had  before  seen  either  in  Polyne- 
sia, Mauritius,  or  in  Madagascar. 

On  the  forenoon  of  this  day  I  met  a  chief  from  the  capi- 
tal who  spoke  French  and  a  little  English.  He  was  a 
young  man  of  considerable  intelligence,  and  when  some  of 
my  friends  showed  him  the  likenesses  which  had  been 
taken  at  Tamatave  he  expressed  a  great  desire  to  have  his 
own.  I  told  him  I  had  no  proper  materials,  but  would  en- 
deavor to  show  him  the  process  by  which  it  was  done.  He 
repeated  his  wish  to  have  his  likeness,  and  sent  a  slave  for 
his  lamba,  as  he  said  he  wished  to  be  taken  in  the  costume 
of  his  country.  As  soon,  however,  as  the  camera  had  been 
taken  to  the  appointed  place,  the  sound  of  music — a  drum 
and  clarionet — announced  the  approach  of  the  governor, 
who  passed  by  in  his  palanquin,  attended  by  one  officer  on 
horseback  and  a  number  on  foot,  surrounded  and  followed 
by  a  sort  of  body-guard,  wearing  the  native  white  salaka  or 
cloth  round  the  loins,  over  which  their  cartouche-box  was 
fastened  by  a  black  belt,  and  each  armed  with  a  musket  or 
spear. 

On  my  entering  the  house  where  the  governor  had 
alighted,  he  very  cordially  welcomed  me  in  English,  which 
I  supposed  he  had  learned  while  on  board  one  of  the  En- 
glish ships  of  war,  in  which  he  with  others  had  been  placed 
by  Eadama.  A  sort  of  proces  verbal  respecting  the  wreck 
of  the  Eureka,  which  the  captain  wished  to  have  authenti- 
cated by  his  signature,  in  order  to  claim  the  insurance  on 
the  vessel,  occupied  some  considerable  time;  after  which 
the  governor  came  and  examined  with  much  interest  the 


216  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vn. 

camera,  which  was  standing  in  the  yard.  The  distinct  defin- 
ite figure  of  one  of  his  attendants,  as  shown  on  the  ground 
glass,  seemed  greatly  to  excite  his  curiosity,  and  he  said,  if 
I  could  stay  two  or  three  days  he  should  like  to  have  his 
own  portrait.  I  tried  with  the  chief,  whose  dress  in  the 
mean  time  had  been  brought,  but  the  sun  was  too  far  ad- 
vanced ;  and  the  prince  appeared  the  better  reconciled  to 
his  disappointment  from  a  hope  which  he  expressed  of  vis- 
iting Tamatave  before  I  left  the  island. 

The  following  day  being  rainy,  I  was  confined  most  of 
the  time  to  the  house,  where,  notwithstanding  the  unfavor- 
able weather,  I  saw  many  of  the  natives.  Several  of  those 
who  had  spent  the  evenings  with  me  brought  small  pres- 
ents, such  as  a  basket  of  eggs,  a  fowl,  or  some  neatly-made 
little  native  baskets,  with  other  similar  tokens  of  good- will. 
Toward  evening  the  rain  abated,  and  I  walked  out  in  com- 
pany with  my  friends  along  the  sea-shore,  to  the  spot  where 
the  wreck  had  taken  place.  On  my  return  the  chief  joined 
us,  and  we  had  a  most  deeply  interesting  conversation. 
The  remarks  of  my  friends  during  our  walk,  when  they 
spoke  of  the  vastness  and  wonders  of  the  deep,  or  the  be- 
neficence manifested  in  the  works  of  the  creation,  indicated 
a  degree  of  reflection  and  religious  feeling  which  to  me  was 
exceedingly  gratifying.  The  evening  was  passed  pleasant- 
ly in  company  with  the  friendly  natives  of  the  place,  and  I 
arranged  for  my  departure  at  a  very  early  hour  in  the  morn- 
ing, hoping  by  additional  bearers  to  reach  Tamatave  dur- 
ing the  night. 

On  the  9th  of  September  we  were  stirring  while  it  was 
yet  dark,  and  the  young  chief,  accompanied  by  one  of  his 
attendants,  came  at  an  early  hour  to  see  me  again.  He 
said  he  had  not  been  able  to  sleep  all  night,  and  we  con- 
tinued talking  until  the  bearers  were  all  gathered  at  the 
door,  when,  taking  leave  of  him  and  the  many  friends  who 
had  come  to  bid  me  farewell,  I  set  off  before  seven  o'clock, 


CHAP.  viz.  EETUKN  TO  TAMATAVE.  217 

accompanied  by  my  host,  and  expecting  to  be  followed  in  a 
day  or  two  by  the  tall  friend  who  had  been  my  companion 
from  Tamatave. 

The  air  was  fresh  and  cool  after  the  rain,  and  the  morn- 
ing unusually  pleasant.  We  passed  Sakondro,  the  pictur- 
esque scene  of  which  I  had  intended  to  take  a  view,  but, 
having  been  detained  by  the  rain  a  day  longer  than  I  had 
expected,  we  could  spare  no  time  there.  By  half  past  ten 
we  reached  Ifotsy,  where  we  halted  for  breakfast.  At  this 
place  we  were  overtaken  by  the  mate  of  the  wrecked  ves- 
sel, who  was  proceeding  to  Tamatave  in  the  hope  of  ob- 
taining a  passage  to  Mauritius.  After  resting  about  two 
hours  we  resumed  our  journey  through  the  same  delightful 
country,  and  between  five  and  six  reached  Ivoidotra,  fif- 
teen miles  from  Tamatave.  As  the  officers  of  this  place 
objected  to  our  proceeding  farther  until  the  next  morning, 
I  set  o"ut  to  look  for  plants,  and  before  dark  found  a  num- 
ber of  good  specimens,  with  which  I  returned  to  my  lodg- 
ings about  dusk.  I  ultimately  succeeded  in  adding  some 
of  the  plants  obtained  in  this  remote  region  to  my  own  col- 
lection at  home,  and  one,  a  fine  Angrcecum  superbum,  which 
I  recently  exchanged  for  a  plant  from  India  with  a  nursery- 
man near  London,  bore  during  the  present  spring  a  number 
of  large  pure  white  flowers,  which,  I  have  since  been  in- 
formed, were  selected  on  account  of  their  rarity  and  beauty 
to  form  part  of  the  bridal  bouquet  on  the  occasion  of  the 
recent  nuptials  of  the  Prince  of  Prussia  with  the  Princess 
Eoyal  of  England — an  honor  which  few  could  have  sup- 
posed a  plant  originally  growing  in  a  Malagasy  wilderness 
ever  would  attain. 

After  supper  I  lay  down  on  a  mat  to  rest  until  about 
four  in  the  morning,  when  we  arose — for  the  Malagasy, 
like  all  inhabitants  of  warm  climates,  are  early  risers — and 
by  half  past  five  we  again  set  out  upon  our  journey.  In 
three  hours  more  I  was  set  down  at  the  door  of  my  house 


218  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAE.  CHAP.  vn. 

at  Tamatave,  grateful  for  the  safety  I  had  experienced  and 
for  the  pleasure  the  journey  had  afforded. 

On  inquiring  soon  afterward  of  the  owner  of  the  vessel 
by  which  I  purposed  to  return  to  Mauritius,  when  it  would 
be  likely  to  sail,  I  was  informed  that  the  period  of  quaran- 
tine on  account  of  the  cholera  had  been  shortened,  and  that 
the  ship  would  sail  in  two  days. 

On  the  second  day  after  receiving  this  intelligence,  my 
luggage  and  plants  were  all  conveyed  on  board  the  vessel, 
and,  having  taken  leave  of  my  friends  and  received  much 
kindness  from  the  people,  I  proceeded  to  the  ship  early  on 
the  morning  of  the  13th  of  September.  When  I  reached 
the  Castro — for  that  was  the  name  of  the  vessel — the  cap- 
tain informed  me  that  he  should  not  put  to  sea  until  day- 
light the  next  morning.  I  therefore  gladly  returned  to  the 
shore  to  spend  another  quiet  day  among  the  people. 

In  the  afternoon  of  this  day,  my  tall  friend  whom  I  had 
left  at  Mahavelona  arrived,  having  been  informed  by  a  mes- 
senger of  my  expected  departure.  He,  with  a  number  of 
others,  assembled  at  my  house  in  the  evening,  and  we  pass- 
ed the  time  together  under  a  deep  impression  of  the  improb- 
ability of  our  ever  meeting  again  in  the  present  life.  At  a 
late 'hour  four  of  the  company  sent  for  their  mats,  and 
spread  them  on  the  floor  of  my  room,  while  a  neighboring 
chie£  whom  I  had  known  in  England,  sent  his  wife  and  two 
slaves  over  to  my  house  with  various  articles  of  bedding 
for  me  during  the  night,  as  he  knew  that  my  own  were  all 
on  board.  Shortly  after  midnight  my  friends  lay  down  on 
the  floor,  and  I  stretched  myself  on  my  bed,  telling  them  to 
wake  me  at  four  in  the  morning.  They  still  continued  talk- 
ing, however,  and  in  their  anxiety  about  the  time  disturbed 
me  more  than  once.  About  four  we  arose,  and  after  spend- 
ing a  short  time  together  in  that  communion  of  feeling 
which  had  formed  the  basis  of  our  intercourse,  and  receiv- 
ing from  my  friends  the  latest  expression  of  their  affection- 


CHAP.  vii.  MADAGASCAR  FROM  THE  SEA.  219 

ate  feeling,  and  the  kind  wishes  which  they  had  written 
down  for  me  on  the  margin  of  a  piece  of  newspaper  after  I 
had  lain  down  to  rest,  we  set  out  by  the  starlight  of  early 
morning  toward  the  beach.  The  friendly  chief  who  had  sent 
me  my  bed  for  the  night  I  found  waiting  under  his  veranda. 
He  told  me  a  canoe  was  ready  for  me  on  the  shore,  and  he 
then  bade  me  farewell.  Before  we  were  well  out  of  his 
compound  a  man  came  to  say  that  the  ship  was  getting  un- 
der way.  "We  hastened  on ;  the  moon  was  shining  bright- 
ly, and  only  a  faint  line  of  light  indicated  the  approach  of 
the  dawn.  When  at  the  water's  edge  I  took  a  hurried 
leave  of  my  friends,  and  stepping  into  the  little  light  canoe 
was  soon  on  my  way  to  the  ship.  Hats  and  hands  were 
waved  as  long  as  they  could  be  seen,  but  I  was  soon  unable 
to  distinguish  any  thing  beyond  the  white  lambas  covering 
the  figures  still  standing  on  the  beach. 

On  reaching  the  Castro  I  found  the  anchor  nearly  up. 
The  wind  was  fair,  so  that  before  six  we  were  out  of  the 
harbor,  the  white  surf  rolling  on  the  reefs  behind  us,  and  a 
light  breeze  from  the  land  wafting  us  over  the  ocean.  From 
the  poop  of  our  vessel  I  stood  and  gazed  with  strongly-ex- 
cited feelings  on  the  peopled  shore,  where  the  friends  I  had 
left  still  lingered,  and  between  whom,  in  their  comparative- 
ly isolated  solitude,  and  the  deeply -interested  friends  in  my 
own  remote  native  land  I  had  been  as  the  wire  of  the  tele- 
graph, the  medium  of  communicating  thoughts  and  wishes 
of  hallowed  sympathy  and  kindness ;  and  this,  without  ref- 
erence to  other  advantages  that  may  result  from  my  visit,  I 
felt  to  be  a  more  than  ample  compensation  for  any  trifling 
inconvenience  the  voyage  had  occasioned.  I  had  often  be- 
fore, especially  while  performing  quarantine,  gazed  on  the 
wooded  shores  of  Madagascar,  but  they  had  never  looked 
more  beautiful  than  on  this  morning,  as  the  sun  rose  from 
a  cloudless  horizon,  burnishing  with  his  beams  range  after 
range  of  the  long  flat-topped  or  oval-shaped  mountains  that 


220  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP,  vn. 

stretched  far  away  toward  the  interior.  The  summits  and 
the  ridges  of  these  mountains  reflected  from  their  clearly- 
defined  outlines  the  rapidly -increasing  light,  while  the  in- 
tervening valleys  were  filled  with  white  clouds  or  mists, 
those  nearest  the  shore  occasionally  exhibiting  the  sharp 
clear  marking  of  the  tops  of  the  trees  above  the  gradually- 
dissipating  vapors,  while  their  lower  portions  were  entirely 
concealed. 

It  was  long  before  I  left  my  post  of  observation,  but  when 
at  last  I  entered  my  cabin  I  found  that  a  tolerably  good  ar- 
rangement of  my  luggage  had  been  made.  One  or  two 
bales  of  orchids,  too  large  to  be  got  into  any  box  or  basket, 
had  been  fixed  under  my  bed  for  greater  security,  while 
boxes  and  baskets  were  piled  all  around,  almost  up  to  the 
ceiling,  so  as  only  to  leave  me  room  enough  to  get  into  my 
berth.  I  found  my  servant  overwhelmed  with  as  many 
cares  as  if  he  had  been  a  collector  for  the  Zoological  Society, 
for  he  had  brought  on  board  a  large  monkey,  a  ring-tailed 
squirrel,  a  large  parrot  or  cockatoo,  with  a  parrot  of  smaller 
size,  three  or  four  partridges,  a  couple  of  the  native  guinea- 
fowl,  besides  other  curiosities  for  his  friends  at  Mauritius. 
The  cabin  of  the  vessel  was  large,  and  would  have  been 
airy,  but  all  except  the  centre  occupied  by  the  table  was 
filled  with  trusses  of  hay,  over  which  we  crept  to  our  berths, 
and  which  served  us  for  seats  at  our  meals.  This  hay  was 
part  of  the  provender  for  the  cattle,  of  which  we  had  a  hund- 
red and  thirty  large  fat  animals  on  board :  sixty-five  in  the 
hold,  and  the  same  number  on  deck.  Our  captain  was 
obliging,  the  wind  fair  though  light,  and  we  reached  Mau- 
ritius in  the  short  space  of  seven  days. 

As  we  approached  the  shore,  the  summits  of  the  Peter 
Both,  the  Pouce,  and  other  mountains  which  I  had  photo- 
graphed more  than  once,  looked  very  familiar.  On  the  30th 
of  September  we  entered  the  harbor  of  Port  Louis,  having 
been  favored  with  a  smooth,  pleasant,  and  unusually  quick 


CHAP.  vii.  AT  TABLE  BAY.  221 

passage.  One  of  the  native  teachers  came  on  board  our 
vessel,  and  on  the  beach  I  was  cordially  welcomed  by  M. 
Le  Bran,  who  kindly  invited  me  to  his  house.  Here,  while 
renewing  my  intercourse  with  his  family,  I  was  deeply  af- 
fected by  the  mournful  accounts  I  received  of  the  fearful 
devastations  of  the  cholera,  from  which  the  island  was  even 
then  scarcely  free.  During  the  day  I  called  on  some  of  my 
remaining  friends,  several  of  whom  I  found  ill,  not  having 
recovered  from  the  anxiety  and  depression  they  had  suffer- 
ed during  the  prevalence  of  the  disease,  and  some  of  them 
had  themselves  been  more  or  less  affected.  I  felt  an  inde- 
scribable sadness  as  I  went  from  one  house  to  another.  The 
place  seemed  no  longer  the  same,  death  had  made  so  many 
fearful  chasms.  My  meeting  with  the  survivors  of  some  of 
my  most  valued  friends,  Mr.  Kelsey's  family  in  particular, 
was  to  me  peculiarly  sorrowful,  especially  the  meeting  with 
his  daughter,  who  had  always  been  a  member  of  the  happy 
family  circle  to  which  I  had  so  often  been  admitted. 

During  my  short  stay  in  Mauritius  several  opportunities 
occurred  for  receiving  communications  from  Madagascar, 
but  no  tidings  arrived  of  any  change  in  the  views  of  the 
government  or  the  progress  of  public  events  in  that  coun- 
try. In  the  month  of  November,  having  received  letters 
from  England  which  rendered  it  desirable  to  direct  my 
course  to  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  I  immediately  prepared 
for  departure,  and  on  the  20th  of  December  sailed  from  Port 
Louis  in  the  Annie,  a  small  brig  of  about  one  hundred  and 
twenty  tons'  burden,  bound  for  Table  Bay,  which  I  reached 
in  safety  two-and-twenty  days  after  leaving  Mauritius. 


•2-2-2  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CIIAT.  vni. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

COLONY  AT  THE  CAPE  OF  GOOD  HOPE. 

Visit  to  the  Missionary  Settlements  in  the  Cape  Colony. — Journey  to  Paarl. 
— African  Omnibuses. — Driving  ten  in  hand. — Intercourse  with  an  aged 
Missionary. — Departure  from  Cape  Town. — Accident  on  the  Road. — 
Aspect  of  the  Country. — Variety  and  Abundance  of  Flowers  and  Fruits. 
—  Zurbraak. — An  African  Congregation. — The  Montague  Pass. — Os- 
triches.— Extent  and  Beauty  of  the  Cango  Caverns. — Hospitality  of  a 
Negro  Woman. — Matzie's  Riviere. — Settlement  of  African  Christians. — 
Spirited  Conduct  of  the  People  of  Oudshorn. — Journey  across  the  Desert. 
— Graaf  Reynet. — Fruits  of  Frugality  and  Industry. — Flight  of  Locusts. 
— Large  Herds  of  Springboks. — Kindness  of  Mr.  Gilfillan,  Wonder  Hill. 
— Encampment  on  the  Banks  of  the  Orange  River. — Subsidence  of  the 
Waters. — Journey  to  Philipolis. — Sunday  with  the  Griquas. — State  and 
Prospects  of  the  People. — Hospitality  of  the  Boers. — Sheep-shearing  in 
South  Africa. — Cradock. — Disease  among  the  Cattle. — Orange  Grove. — 
Venomous  Reptiles. — Anecdotes  of  Caffres. — Visit  to  Mr.  Hart  at  Glen 
Avon. 

Ox  proceeding  to  the  residence  of  Mr.  Thompson,  the 
agent  of  the  London  Missionary  Society  in  Cape  Town,  I 
found  letters  from  England  urgently  requesting  me  to  visit 
the  several  stations  of  the  Society  in  the  colony,  and,  Mr. 
Thompson  having  proposed  to  accompany  me,  \ve  imme- 
diately commenced  the  necessary  preparations  for  our  jour- 
ney. 

In  the  mean  time  I  paid  a  visit  to  Paarl,  a  station  about 
thirty-five  miles  from  Cape  Town,  and  lying  rather  out  of 
the  line  of  our  route.  I  set  out  in  an  omnibus  drawn  the 
chief  part  of  the  way  by  ten  horses  two  abreast.  The  road 
lay  across  a  wide  sandy  plain  called  the  Cape  Flats.  I  had 
long  been  familiar  with  Cape  heaths  and  mesembryanthe- 
mums,  but  the  vast  numbers  of  the  latter  growing  in  the 


CHAP.  vin.  AN  AGED  MISSIONARY.  223 

dry  white  sand  in  every  direction,  and  the  miles  and  miles 
of  beautiful  heaths,  were  to  me  a  new  and  most  pleasing 
spectacle.  One  species,  apparently  the  elegantissima,  a  tall 
straggling  plant  with  a  bunch  of  bright  scarlet  trumpet- 
shaped  flowers  near  the  termination  of  its  long  slender 
branches,  was  strikingly  conspicuous  above  the  rest. 

As  we  approached  to  Paarl  the  road  was  bordered  with 
verdant  fir-trees  and  oak,  and  much  of  the  neighboring  land 
appeared  to  be  under  cultivation.  Paarl  is  in  the  midst  of 
a  wine  country,  and  the  white-walled  houses  of  the  farmers 
presented  a  novel  and  agreeable  spectacle,  being  generally 
situated  in  the  midst  of  their  vineyards,  which  are  fenced 
with  walls  of  turf  frequently  planted  with  a  broad-leaved 
brier  bearing  a  large  single  white  flower.  The  town  ap- 
peared to  me  almost  Dutch.  A  sort  of  raised  terrace,  call- 
ed a  "  stoup,"  extends  along  the  whole  front  of  the  houses. 
Here  parties  of  ladies  were  sitting,  some  reading,  others 
working  or  chatting  with  their  companions,  and  all  appar- 
ently enjoying  the  cool  of  the  evening.  Proceeding  to  the 
dwelling  of  Mr.  Barker,  I  found  him  a  blind  and  aged  man, 
sitting  outside  his  door  talking  with  some  of  the  people. 
In  very  early  life  we  had  been  acquainted  in  England,  but 
he  had  now  been  more  than  forty  years  in  Africa,  and  we 
had  only  met  once  for  a  few  hours  on  my  previous  visit  to 
the  Cape.  We  had  passed  through  widely  different  scenes 
during  the  long  interval  of  separation,  and  our  unexpected 
meeting  here  led  to  retrospects  of  the  past  mutually  inter- 
esting and  deeply  affecting  to  us  both. 

While  sitting  in  Mr.  Barker's  house  in  the  evening  I 
heard  the  sound  of  singing  in  the  adjacent  school-room, 
and  went  over  to  listen  to  the  exercises  of  a  singing-class 
taught  by  one  of  Mr.  Barker's  daughters.  The  pupils  were 
all  Africans,  and  I  was  much  pleased  with  the  excellent 
voices  of  many  of  the  young  people.  Here  I  also  met  with 
Mr.  James  Eead,  whom  I  had  known  in  England,  and  who 


224  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vm. 

had  been  discharging  the  duties  of  the  pastor  in  the  absence 
of  Mr.  Barker,  his  wife's  father,  who  had  been  to  the  Cape 
in  the  hope  of  receiving  benefit  to  his  sight. 

The  abundance  of  fruit  upon  our  breakfast- table  the  fol- 
lowing morning  was  to  me  an  agreeable  novelty.  The 
peaches,  figs,  mulberries,  and  grapes  were  exceedingly  fine, 
though  the  latter  were  scarcely  ripe.  Mr.  Barker  and  I 
passed  the  greater  part  of  the  day  under  a  large  apricot- 
tree  in  the  orchard  at  the  back  of  his  house,  conversing 
nearly  the  whole  time  on  missionary  affairs  connected  with 
the  station. 

I  was  stirring  by  daybreak  the  next  morning,  and  by 
five  was  again  seated  on  the  omnibus,  returning  to  Cape 
Town  as  fast  as  ten  horses  could  convey  us.  The  box  was 
occupied  by  two  drivers,  both  men  of  color.  One  of  them 
held  the  reins,  ten  in  hand,  and  the  other  plied  the  whip, 
touching  up  the  leaders,  when  necessary,  with  perfect  ease 
and  precision. 

In  order  to  accomplish  the  long  journey  before  me  as 
quickly  as  possible,  horses  had  been  selected  instead  of 
oxen,  and,  late  in  the  afternoon  of  the  23d  of  January,  Mr. 
Thompson  and  I  left  Cape  Town  in  a  covered  cart  drawn 
by  four  horses.  "We  had  scarcely  proceeded  more  than 
eight  miles  when  our  leaders,  taking  fright  at  a  wagon, 
started  off  the  road,  and  our  cart  was  in  an  instant  over- 
turned into  a  sort  of  pit  from  which  sand  had  been  dug  for 
repairing  the  road.  I  was  a  good  deal  bruised  by  the  fall, 
and  we  went  on  more  slowly  until  about  midnight,  when 
we  reached  Somerset  or  Hottentot's  Holland.  Here  we 
stopped  at  a  hotel  kept  by  an  Englishman,  of  whom  we 
obtained  a  bed  but  no  refreshment.  Early  the  next  morn- 
ing we  resumed  our  journey,  and  soon  reached  the  com- 
mencement of  the  Sir  Lowry  Pass.  As  we  advanced  to- 
ward the  summit  I  was  delighted  with  the  new  kinds  of 
flowers  which  appeared  by  the  sides  of  the  road,  especially 


CHAP.  vm.  ABUNDANT  FRUIT.  225 

the  esculent  and  amaranthine  species.  The  rocky  piles  of 
the  mountain's  summit  towered  high  above  us,  while  white 
clouds,  clearly  denned,  concealed  all  the  valley  below,  be- 
yond which  the  waters  of  the  ocean  faintly  reflected  the 
rays  of  the  morning  sun.  In  one  part  of  our  journey  we 
saw  numbers  of  small  tortoises ;  at  another  place  partridges 
ran  along  the  road  for  a  considerable  distance  before  us ; 
but  the  great  variety  of  plants,  especially  bulbs,  gladiolus, 
or  Watsonia,  stretching  along  for  miles  on  either  side,  were 
particularly  attractive. 

On  the  second  night,  when  we  stopped  at  a  farm-house, 
I  walked  into  the  garden  or  orchard,  and  was  truly  aston- 
ished at  the  abundance  of  the  produce.  The  fig-trees  were 
covered  with  large  well-formed  fruit,  apples  were  equally 
abundant,  but  the  pear-trees  were  literally  loaded,  and  the 
branches  of  the  peach-trees  hung  straight  down  from  the 
weight  of  the  fruit,  which  studded  the  boughs  as  thickly  as 
gooseberries  hang  on  their  bushes  in  England.  The  peach- 
trees  were  not  trained  against  any  railing  or  other  support, 
but  were  growing  as  standards.  Some  of  the  fruit-trees 
appeared  not  to  have  had  the  least  pruning,  but  were 
growing  in  all  the  rank  luxuriance  of  nature.  The  fruit 
was  small,  and,  as  compared  with  the  same  kinds  in  En- 
gland, rather  woolly  and  insipid.  The  vegetables  in  the 
same  garden  comprised  maize,  French  beans,  carrots,  beet, 
cucumbers,  and  pumpkins.  Among  the  flowers  were  the 
common  monthly  rose,  the  larkspur,  the  old-fashioned  pur- 
ple .stock,  Valeria,  and  some  curious  cactuses. 

On  the  following  morning  we  resumed  our  journey,  and 
in  the  afternoon  reached  the  missionary  station  of  Zurbraak, 
having  traveled,  since  leaving  Cape  Town,  175  miles  in  less 
than  four  days.  Zurbraak  is  situated  in  a  somewhat  con- 
tracted valley,  and  occupies  the  sides  of  a  small  river,  from 
which  a  portion  of  the  land  is  irrigated.  There  are  about 
1600  people  connected  with  this  station,  but  many  were 

P 


226  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vm. 

absent  in  service  or  at  work  in  Swellendum  and  the  neigh- 
borhood. Mr.  Helm,  the  resident  missionary,  received  us 
kindly,  and  the  next  morning  I  attended  public  worship  in 
the  chapel,  a  good  substantial  building.  About  500  persons 
were  present,  all  persons  of  color,  and  many  of  them  Hot- 
tentots. All  were  clothed  in  European  dresses,  the  women 
wearing  either  a  loose  cotton  bonnet  or  a  handkerchief  on 
their  heads.  This  was  the  first  African  congregation  I  had 
seen,  and  I  was  struck  with  the  light  color  and  peculiarly 
angular  and  Tartar -like  physiognomy  of  the  Hottentots. 
The  deportment  of  the  people  was  attentive  and  serious, 
and  I  was  much  pleased  with  the  fine  voices  of  many  of 
the  singers.  Their  performance  was,  perhaps,  not  always 
scientifically  correct,  and  sometimes  the  singing  was  too 
high ;  but  the  tones  of  some  of  the  voices,  their  softness  as 
well  as  their  compass,  were  such  as  are  rarely  surpassed  in 
ordinary  congregations. 

On  the  last  day  of  January  we  left  Zurbraak,  and  spent 
the  following  Sunday  at  the  village  of  George  and  the  ad- 
jacent institution  of  Pecaltsdorp.  Here,  as  well  as  at  the 
last  station,  we  had  very  full  conferences  with  the  mission- 
aries and  the  people  respecting  the  important  objects  of  my 
visit. 

On  the  6th  of  February  we  ascended  the  celebrated  Mon- 
tague Pass  over  the  Blue  Mountains.  It  was  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  George  that  I  first  saw  the  beautiful  Tritoma 
uvaria,  now  designated  Belthymea  or  Kniphofia,  rearing  its 
slender  upright  stalk  surmounted  by  a  large  cluster  of  pend- 
ent trumpet-shaped  flowers,  with  yellow  centre  and  scarlet 
ends.  By  the  sides  of  the  pass  I  also  observed  a  number 
of  graceful  ferns,  especially  one  mass  of  the  very  elegantly- 
growing  Gleichenia  pofypodioidSs,  of  which  I  gathered  a  spec- 
imen. This  plant  spread  up  the  side  of  the  pass  for  three 
or  four  yards  from  the  road,  entirely  covering  the  face  of 
the  rock.  Among  the  bulbs  was  one  bearing  a  dark  blue 


CHAP.  vin.  OSTRICHES.  227 

flower,  wliicli  I  dug  up  and  placed  in  the  wagon.  There 
were  also  great  numbers  of  scarlet  amaranthine  plants  just 
coming  into  flower.  In  the  afternoon  of  this  day  we  passed 
a  couple  of  ostriches.  They  were  feeding  among  the  heath, 
or,  rather,  the  low  shrubby  Rheinorsten  bush,  and  did  not 
attempt  to  run  until  we  had  approached  within  twenty 
yards,  when  they  raised  up  their  long  necks,  apparently 
seven  or  eight  feet  high,  and  then  quietly  trotted  away,  the 
elastic  springing  of  the  feathers  of  their  wings  and  tail  im- 
parting to  their  movements  a  singular  appearance.  Though 
the  road  was  in  some  parts  extremely  rough,  we  traveled 
about  fifty-two  miles  during  the  day,  and  arrived  at  Dysals- 
dorp  a  little  before  sunset. 

The  next  day  we  visited,  in  company  with  Mr.  Anderson, 
many  objects  of  interest  at  the  station,  among  others  the 
dam  across  the  Elephant's  Eiver,  a  valuable  water-course 
constructed  by  the  people  for  irrigating  their  land ;  and  ear- 
ly on  the  following  morning  we  set  off  to  visit  a  settlement 
recently  formed  at  the  base  of  the  Zwartz  Mountains.  On 
our  way  we  again  passed  a  couple  of  ostriches  and  several 
pairs  of  the  Cape  turkey,  a  species  of  bustard.  After  trav- 
eling about  sixteen  miles  we  halted  at  Silvermansdorp. 
Here  Mr.  Schceman,  a  hospitable  boer,  invited  us  to  his 
house,  and  furnished  us  with  an  excellent  breakfast.  We 
were  now  joined  by  another  party,  including  a  Swedish  nat- 
uralist, proceeding  to  the  celebrated  Cango  Caverns,  which 
we  also  intended  to  visit. 

From  this  point  we  proceeded  on  horseback,  threading 
our  way  through  thickets  of  mimosa,  or  among  fragments 
of  rock,  by  the  margin  of  a  stream  which  flowed  along  the 
bottom  of  a  deep  wooded  valley.  This  stream  we  fre- 
quently crossed — at  times  passing  for  a  considerable  dis- 
tance along  its  course — the  water,  in  some  places,  scarcely 
covering  the  horses'  fetlocks,  in  others  reaching  to  the  girths. 
Here  I  found  a  new  kind  of  vegetation.  The  speckboom . 


228  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vra. 

or  elephant's  food,  Portulacaria  Afra,  was  abundant ;  but  I 
was  most  gratified  on  meeting,  as  with  old  friends,  with  sev- 
eral sorts  of  geraniums  growing  in  their  native  state.  The 
horse-shoe  and  plain-leaved  scarlet  were  quite  large  shrubs, 
sometimes  six  or  seven  feet  high.  The  dark  oak-leaved 
kind  grew  vigorously.  The  ivy-leaved  variety  spread  its 
creeping  branches  over  the  adjacent  trees,  and  opened  its 
pink  blossoms  in  great  abundance.  In  other  places  I  no- 
ticed several  of  the  finer-leaved  Pelargoniums,  with  small 
and  delicately-penciled  flowers.  * 

About  noon  we  left  the  stream,  and,  leading  our  horses 
some  distance  up  the  mountain's  side,  reached  the  entrance 
to  the  Cango  Caverns.  Having  provided  ourselves  with 
guides  and  large  candles,  inserted  in  the  end  of  bamboo 
canes,  we  proceeded  along  a  passage  about  six  feet  wide,  on 
an  uneven  and  slippery  path,  for  about  thirty  or  forty  yards. 
We  then  came  to  a  precipice,  which  we  descended  by  means 
of  a  rude  sort  of  ladder  for  about  thirty  feet,  and  then  found 
ourselves  in  a  spacious  subterranean  hall  or  chamber,  from 
sixty  to  a  hundred  feet  wide,  and  fifty  feet  high ;  but,  though 
our  party  was  large  and  our  lights  numerous,  it  was  not 
easy  to  j  udge  of  dimensions  under  such  circumstances.  This 
chamber  is  called  after  the  discoverer  of  the  cavern,  Van 
Zil's  Hall.  In  different  places  parts  of  the  dark  bluish-col- 
ored original  limestone,  or  schistous  rock,  appeared,  but  the 
sides  were  nearly  covered  with  calcareous  incrustations,  and 
the  roof  was  hung  with  stalactites  of  varied  form,  but  chiefly 
small  and  short.  A  number  of  apertures  or  chasms,  some 
of  them  three  or  four  feet  wide,  opened  into  passages  lead- 
ing to  other  smaller  chambers  or  grottoes,  some  covered 
with  recently -crystallized  stalactites,  which  reflected  and 
multiplied  our  lights  like  the  cut  glass  of  a  chandelier.  In 
others  the  crystallizations  were  in  a  state  of  decomposition. 
"We  visited  some  exceedingly  beautiful  grottoes  on  the  left- 
hand  side  of  the  large  entrance-hall,  and  then  proceeded 


CHAP.  vin.  THE  CANGO  CAVERNS.  229 

farther  toward  the  interior  of  the  mountain,  passing  some- 
times through  a  series  of  chambers  connected  by  narrow, 
and  at  times  difficult,  passages.  Few  of  these  chambers 
were  of  equal  dimensions  with  the  first,  but  most  of  them 
were  lined  and  ornamented  with  stalactite  formations  of  ev- 
ery imaginable  shape,  and  in  various  stages  of  crystalliza- 
tion or  decomposition.  In  some  places  buttresses  or  pilas- 
ters, of  most  exquisite  brightness  and  of  elaborate  combi- 
nations of  form,  reached  down  the  sides  of  the  wall  from  the 
roof  to  the  floor.  In  others  single  pillars,  or  clusters  of 
small  pillars,  like  those  in  the  interior  of  a  cathedral,  rose 
from  the  floor  and  spread  out  broader  at  the  top,  as  if  from 
thence  arches  were  to  spring.  Sometimes  the  stalagmites 
seemed  like  glassy  tapering  cones  fixed  in  the  floor,  and 
reaching  nearly  to  the  roof.  The  floors  of  the  rooms  and 
passages  were  uneven  and  slippery,  generally  covered  with 
a  whitish  substance  like  slightly-sullied  snow.  But  it  would 
have  required,  as  indeed  it  would  have  amply  repaid,  a 
much  longer  time  than  I  could  then  command  to  examine 
or  note  either  the  exact  dimensions  of  the  place,  or  the  cu- 
rious and  strange  crystallizations  which  crowded  around 
me.  As  it  was,  I  sometimes  found  myself  left  alone  by  my 
companions,  in  consequence  of  having  lingered  to  look  on 
the  inconceivably  striking  and  attractive  forms  which  sur- 
rounded, and  ceiled,  and  floored  some  exquisite  little  grotto 
connected  by  a  chasm  or  other  aperture,  with  the  main  gal- 
lery or  passage,  like  one  of  the  beautiful  little  marble  chap 
els  which  are  seen  in  the  side  of  some  of  the  splendid 
churches  in  Italy. 

The  silent  and  ceaseless  process  by  which  the  interiors 
of  these  sublime  temples  of  nature  had  been  thus  decorated 
and  furnished  was  apparent,  and  formed  not  the  least  inter- 
esting among  the  many  wonders  of  the  place.  A  circle  of 
crystals,  on  a  part  of  the  roof  where  drops  of  water  hung 
suspended,  marked  in  several  places  the  commencement  of 


230  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAE.  CHAP.  vm. 

one  of  those  singular  formations.  At  other  places  a  broad- 
based  cone  descended  several  feet,  while  the  moisture  drip- 
ping from  its  inverted  apex  indicated  that  the  beautiful 
stalactite  was  still  receiving  fresh  additions  to  its  size  and 
form.  Sometimes  I  noticed  small  marble-like  circles  on  the 
floor,  at  others  the  pyramid  rose  several  feet  high,  its  sum- 
mit presenting  a  thimble-shaped  cup  filled  with  water, 
which,  overflowing,  spread  down  the  sides.  In  some  parts 
the  crystallizations  above  and  below  appeared  to  have  no 
connection,  but  in  others  the  upper  and  lower  formations 
appeared  to  be  immediately  one  above  the  other,  the  lower 
structure  being  formed  by  the  lime-impregnated  water,  drip- 
ping from  the  centre  of  the  stalactite  above.  At  times  they 
had  approached  within  a  few  feet  of  each  other,  and  some 
were  so  united  as  to  exhibit  the  form  of  a  gigantic  hour- 
glass, cut  with  exquisite  sharpness,  and  with  endless  variety 
of  figure.  Besides  the  water  dropping  constantly  from  the 
roof,  there  were  frequent  cisterns  or  hollows  in  the  sides  or 
floors  of  the  grottoes,  like  pure  alabaster  baths,  filled  with 
water  so  transparent  that  several  of  us  stepped  more  than 
ankle  deep  into  them,  without  perceiving  any  thing  but  the 
coral-like  stalagmite  at  the  bottom.  The  water  was  cold 
and  perfectly  tasteless.  In  many  of  the  chambers  I  ob- 
served names,  and  dates  of  the  visits  of  parties,  some  of 
high  rank  and  station,  either  cut  in  the  rock,  or  written  in 
pencil  on  the  walls.  At  length,  after  having  been  two 
hours  in  the  cavern,  we  reached  the  spacious  gallery,  said 
to  be  800  feet  in  length,  and  designated  the  Thompson  gal- 
lery, from  its  having  been  first  explored  by  a  gentleman 
of  that  name  about  thirty  years  ago.  From  this  point  we 
retraced  our  steps,  visiting,  on  our  way  back,  several  small 
and  exceedingly  beautiful  grottoes,  situated  along  the  sides 
of  those  by  which  we  had  passed  on  our  way  into  the  cav- 
ern. 

On  reaching  the  mountain  side  we  proceeded  to  the 


CHAP.  vm.  MATZIE'S  KIVIEKE.  231 

house  of  a  neighboring  boer,  who  had  acted  as  our  guide, 
and  after  a  short  rest  pursued  our  difficult  way  through  the 
tangled  brushwood  and  along  the  stony  bottom  of  the  val- 
ley for  several  miles ;  and,  having  crossed  the  river  more 
than  forty  times  during  the  journey  to  and  from  the  cav- 
ern, we  reached  a  more  open  country  and  a  better  road. 
Ee  vie  wing,  in  thought,  the  rare  and  wonderful  objects  I 
had  so  recently  left,  and  gazing  on  the  bold  mountain,  the 
wood,  and  the  deep  rocky  ravine,  with  its  choked-up  tor- 
rent overgrown  with  wild  brushwood  and  trees — a  wild  un- 
tamed wilderness,  differing,  perhaps,  little  from  what  it  was 
three  quarters  of  a  century  ago,  when  the  boer  Van  Zil  in 
his  hunting  excursion  discovered  the  cavern — I  found  my- 
self involuntarily  musing  on  its  probable  aspect  in  future 
ages,  under  the  influence  of  an  augmented  population,  and 
a  higher  order  of  civilization. 

After  riding  along  for  some  time,  we  "  off-saddled,"  to 
use  the  expression  of  the  country,  in  order  to  allow  our 
horses  to  graze  and  rest  for  half  an  hour.  Tired  with  the 
excitement  and  exercise  of  the  day,  I  lay  down  at  the  foot 
of  a  mountain,  resting  my  head  upon  a  piece"  of  rock,  and 
soon  fell  fast  asleep ;  but  was  awakened  by  an  aged  negro 
woman,  who  lived  in  a  hut  near  at  hand,  and  had  brought 
us  half  a  dozen  ripe  juicy  pears,  as  welcome  to  us  as  the 
fresh  green  grass  was  to  our  horses.  When  Mr.  Anderson 
tendered  our  thanks,  the  poor  woman  simply  replied,  "I 
thank  God :  He  gives  us  all."  I  afterward  found  that  she 
occasionally  went  to  Matzie's  Kiviere,  ten  miles  distant, 
when  Mr.  Anderson  visited  the  station  to  preach  to  the 
people. 

When  rested  and  refreshed  we  mounted  our  horses,  and, 
just  as  the  sun  was  setting,  reached  Matzie's  Kiviere,  a  fer- 
tile plain  at  the  foot  of  the  lofty  range  of  Zwartzberg 
mountains.  The  good  people,  who  had  sent  horses  half 
the  way  to  meet  us,  gave  us  a  simple  but  cordial  welcome, 


232  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vra. 

bringing  us  refreshment  to  the  large  old  house  of  the  for- 
mer proprietor;  and  then,  after  assembling  for  religious 
worship,  retired  to  their  different  homes. 

Next  morning,  while  sitting  at  our  breakfast,  of  which 
excellent  fruit  formed  a  considerable  part,  I  looked  out  and 
saw  within  a  circular  fence,  at  a  short  distance  from  the 
house,  eight  or  ten  horses  driven  round  upon  a  quantity 
of  straw  spread  over  a  smooth  hard  clay  floor.  This  I 
was  informed  was  their  threshing-floor,  and  thus  the  corn 
was  trodden  out — a  process  which  I  afterward  witnessed  in 
many  other  parts  of  the  colony.  During  the  day  we  ac- 
companied the  missionary  and  a  number  of  the  people  to 
their  grazing-ground,  corn-lands,  gardens,  fountains,  and  dif- 
ferent habitations.  At  the  latter  we  found  the  good-wife 
had  usually  a  cup  of  coffee  and  cakes,  or  a  dish  of  grapes 
or  some  other  refreshment,  waiting  our  arrival.  The  cot- 
tages, though  designated  by  their  owners  as  only  tempora- 
ry dwellings,  were  many  of  them  neat  and  comfortable. 
All  contained  a  separate  and  partitioned  bedroom ;  and  I 
was  sometimes  amused  at  the  accumulation  of  treasures 
which  the  outer  room  exhibited.  Each  had  a  table  and 
chairs,  or  some  ruder  kind  of  seat,  frequently  the  driving- 
box  of  a  wagon.  In  one  cottage,  where  we  took  some  re- 
freshment, the  end  of  the  room  was  occupied  by  two  large 
bins  about  four  feet  deep,  built  up  in  brick- work  from  the 
floor,  and  filled  with  excellent  wheat — in  quantity,  I  was 
told,  about  forty  bushels.  At  one  corner  of  the  same  room 
hung  the  fowling-piece  of  the  master,  with  powder-horns, 
and  shooting  apparatus;  at  another  corner  the  adze,  the 
axe,  the  cross-cut  saw ;  and  in  a  third  the  spade  and  the 
hoe ;  while  chisels,  augers,  and  small  tools  were  stuck  into 
different  parts  of  the  thatch;  and  on  a  pole  above  hung 
long  strips  of  the  dried  flesh  of  the  -antelope,  and  other 
beasts.  The  shelves,  in  different  parts,  were  occupied  with 
articles  of  crockery- ware,  besides  a  coffee-pot,  and  a  brass 


CHAP.  vra.  SETTLEMENT  OF  AFRICAN  CHRISTIANS.  233 

or  tin  tea-kettle.  Beyond  these,  the  skins  of  kids,  or  other 
small  animals  converted  into  bags,  with  the  hair  inside,  but 
the  legs  projecting — some  apparently  filled  with  nails  or 
other  valuables — hung  from  different  parts  of  the  walls. 
The  cooking-place  was  generally  in  a  low  shed  outside. 

In  the  evening  the  people  assembled  in  considerable 
numbers  for  public  worship.  Many  of  the  men  remained 
for  friendly  conference  with  the  missionary  until  a  late 
hour.  After  we  had  retired  for  the  night,  we  were  dis- 
turbed by  the  loud  barking  of  the  dogs,  who  had  found  in 
one  of  the  gardens  a  porcupine,  which  they  killed. 

Soon  after  daybreak  the  next  morning  we  took  leave  of 
our  friends.  Eight  or  nine  of  the  men  accompanied  us  on 
horseback  for  several  miles,  when  we  all  alighted,  and  after 
a  hearty  farewell  we  resumed  our  journey,  and  they  re- 
turned to  their  homes. 

The  members  of  this  interesting  community,  and  there 
were  about  forty  families,  both  men  and  women,  were  all  a 
few  years  ago  slaves.  In  this  condition,  however,  they  had 
received  religious  instruction,  and  had  become  Christian 
men  and  women.  Slavery  had  made  them  familiar  with 
labor,  and  this  has  proved  their  great  advantage.  When 
emancipated,  their  labor  soon  brought  its  return.  Chris- 
tianity taught  them  prudence  in  the  use  of  their  earnings, 
and  thus  they  were  soon  able  to  buy  a  few  goats,  or  sheep, 
and  oxen.  Two  or  three  years  ago,  eighteen  of  them,  led 
by  the  missionary,  united  in  renting  this  farm  of  8000 
acres.  The  cultivation  of  the  farm  enabled  them  to  pay 
the  rent  punctually ;  and  a  year  ago  they  entered,  before 
the  constituted  authorities,  into  a  legal  agreement  to  pur- 
chase it  for  £4000,  to  be  paid  by  installments  with  six  per 
cent,  interest.  One  thousand  pounds  was  to  be  paid  in  the 
month  of  November  after  our  visit,  and  Mr.  Anderson  said 
he  had  no  doubt  that  the  money  would  be  all  ready  by  the 
specified  time.  Every  one  of  the  land-owners  possesses  a 


234  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vra. 

team  of  oxen,  and  all  but  one  a  wagon.  They  possess, 
moreover,  a  large  number  of  horses,  beside  cows,  sheep,  and 
goats.  They  have  divided  the  land  into  twenty  parts :  Mr. 
Anderson,  who  has  led  them  on  in  every  step,  taking  one 
part ;  and  they  have  every  prospect  of  soon  beholding  the 
whole  their  own.  The  few  regulations  of  the  community 
are  simple  and  judicious.  One  is,  that  no  intoxicating 
drink  shall  be  sold  in  the  place.  Every  one  of  these  men 
gave  his  vote  at  the  late  election  of  members  to  be  sent  by 
this  district  to  the  South  African  parliament;  I  was  told 
that  their  suffrages  were  solicited  by  more  than  one  candi- 
date. 

Arrangements  were  made  while  I  was  there  for  securing 
the  services  of  a  schoolmaster ;  and  they  hope,  ultimately, 
to  provide  the  requisite  means  for  their  own  spiritual  in- 
struction. I  left  them  not  only  with  a  high  degree  of  satis- 
faction, on  account  of  what  I  had  witnessed,  but  with  senti- 
ments of  deep  respect ;  and  at  our  last  parting  interview  I 
alluded  to  the  goodness  of  God  toward  them,  their  own 
great  responsibility,  and  the  glorious  future  before  them  as 
being  among  the  pioneers  of  their  class  throughout  the 
country. 

After  a  fatiguing  j  ourney — a  great  part  of  the  way  through 
the  rocky  defiles  which  we  had  previously  traversed — we 
reached  the  recently-established  but  thriving  village  of  Oud- 
shorn.  The  labors  of  Mr.  Anderson  had  been,  for  some 
time  divided  between  the  inhabitants  of  this  place  and  those 
of  Dysalsdorp ;  and  early  in  the  evening  we  met  the  people 
in  the  neat  substantial  chapel,  which  they  had  recently 
erected,  for  the  purpose  of  deliberating  on  important  ar- 
rangements connected  with  the  education  of  their  children 
and  their  own  religious  benefit.  I  was  highly  gratified  with 
the  lively,  active,  and  prosperous  state  of  the  Christian  com- 
munity here,  more  especially  with  the  commendable  efforts 
they  had  made,  and  were  still  proposing  to  make,  for  sus- 


CHAP.  viir.          JOURNEY  ACROSS  THE  DESERT.  235 

taining  the  ordinances  of  religion  among  themselves.  These 
laudable  purposes  they  have  since  fully  carried  out,  and 
their  highly-esteemed  minister  is  now  generously  supported 
by  the  people  among  whom  he  labors.  Sunday,  February 
the  llth,  was  ushered  in  by  a  meeting  for  prayer  at  sunrise. 
At  the  forenoon  service  many  more  attended  than  could 
gain  admission  to  the  chapel ;  and  about  two  hundred  com- 
municants afterward  united  in  partaking  of  the  Lord's  Sup- 
per. Their  serious  and  earnest  attention  during  the  services 
of  the  day  afforded  me  much  satisfaction.  In  the  afternoon 
we  proceeded  to  Dysalsdorp,  eighteen  miles  distant,  where 
a  large  congregation  met  for  public  worship  in  the  even- 
ing. 

On  Monday  the  12th,  after  an  important  meeting  with  the 
people  of  the  place,  Mr.  Thompson  and  I  took  leave  of  Mr. 
Anderson  and  his  sister,  grateful  for  the  hospitality  and 
kindness  we  had  received.  We  next  directed  our  course 
toward  the  Karroo,  or  desert,  which  we  had  to  pass  before 
reaching  Graaf-Eeinet.  In  order  to  relieve  our  horses  as 
much  as  possible  we  gent  them  on  three  days'  journey,  that 
they  might  be  better  prepared  for  the  most  difficult  part  of 
the  route.  Following  with  oxen  we  reached  the  place 
where  they  had  been  waiting  on  Wednesday  night,  and  on 
Thursday  morning,  after  ascending  a  sort  of  defile,  called 
Do  Beers  Port,  we  entered  the  Karroo.  About  noon  we 
came  to  a  pool  of  muddy  water,  near  a  solitary  house,  where 
we  halted  to  rest,  and  to  give  our  horses  water ;  the  last  we 
expected  to  obtain  for  them  until  the  desert  was  passed.  A 
Dutch  New  Testament  was  received  with  expressions  of 
thankfulness  by  the  mistress  of  this  solitary  dwelling,  who 
refused  any  payment  for  the  water  for  our  horses,  or  milk 
for  ourselves.  In  about  an  hour  we  departed,  and  were 
now  traversing  the  desert,  bordered  on  the  side  by  which 
we  had  entered  by  low  barren  hills,  but  stretching  away  to 
the  eastward  and  northward,  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach, 


236  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  Vm. 

in  one  dreary,  treeless  waste,  with  only  here  and  there  a 
very  distant  hill  looming  in  the  horizon. 

The  soil  of  this  desert  is  hard-baked  reddish  earth,  level 
rock,  or  gritty  sand  and  loose  stones.  The  only  vegetation 
was  a  sparse  prickly  sort  of  stunted  bush,  seldom  a  foot 
high,  with  several  varieties  of  euphorbia  and  mesembryan- 
themum.  We  saw  a  few  birds,  but  all  besides  was  a  blank 
and  dreary  waste.  Ever  since  leaving  the  pool  of  water 
one  of  our  horses  had  shown  symptoms  of  disease,  and  about 
five  o'clock  our  driver  said  he  did  not  think  it  would  live, 
and  that  if  it  died  we  should  never  get  the  wagon  across 
the  desert  with  the  rest.  In  this  predicament  we  halted  for 
the-  night,  and,  perceiving  a  tent  and  a  couple  of  wagons  at 
a  short  distance  belonging  to  some  boers  who  are  in  the 
habit  at  certain  seasons  of  the  year  of  moving  about  the 
borders  of  the  desert  with  large  flocks  of  sheep,  we  were 
truly  glad  to  find,  on  inquiry,  that  they  had  a  horse  which 
they  were  willing  to  exchange  or  sell.  On  this  occasion  we 
slept  all  night  in  our  wagon  in  the  open  desert,  and  having 
obtained  a  fresh  horse  the  next  morning  resumed  our  jour- 
ney. In  two  or  three  hours,  however,  two  other  horses 
became  ill,  and  as  the  driver  said  they  could  go  no  farther, 
we  halted  till  the  cool  of  the  day.  We  had  walked  a  great 
part  of  the  distance  to  relieve  our  horses,  every  now  and 
then  passing,  either  on  the  road  or  near  it,  the  whitening 
skeleton  of  some  poor  toil-worn  beast  which  had  there  found 
its  last  resting-place.  Toward  evening  we  set  off  again, 
proceeding  at  a  slow  pace  until  about  nine  o'clock,  when 
we  gave  our  horses  half  the  provender  that  remained,  but 
looked  in  vain  for  water.  At  midnight  we  had  thunder 
and  lightning,  and  rain,  but  the  tilt  of  our  wagon  kept  us 
dry.  Soon  after  daybreak  we  were  again  moving,  and  again 
in  the  course  of  a  few  hours  our  horses  showed  signs  of 
fatigue.  We  therefore  walked  on  a  considerable  way, 
and  in  about  an  hour  and  a  half  reached  Braakfontayn, 


CHAP.  vra.  EEACH  BEAAKFONTAYN.  237 

where  we  found  water  and  provender.  The  horses,  as  soon 
as  they  were  unharnessed,  ran  to  the  green  grass  growing 
by  the  side  of  the  fountain,  and  began  to  eat  most  vora- 
ciously ;  they  then  turned  to  the  water,  but  drank  less  than 
I  expected ;  their  next  enjoyment  was  a  good  roll  in  the 
dust.  They  afterward  eagerly  consumed  a  number  of  small 
sheaves  of  oats,  called  oat-hay,  which  is  the  usual  provender 
for  horses  in  the  colony. 

At  the  same  farm-house  where  we  procured  the  oats  we 
also  obtained  bread  and  milk,  and  excellent  grapes,  for  our 
own  breakfast.  I  afterward  went  to  one  of  the  large  barns 
or  outhouses  near,  into  which  a  number  of  Caffre  and  Fingoe 
women  were  carrying  on  their  heads  baskets  of  grapes ;  and 
on  entering  the  place  saw,  toward  one  end,  a  large  heap  of 
bunches  of  fine  ripe  grapes,  which  the  master  informed  us 
were  to  be  used  in  making  brandy.  The  grapes  are  first 
put  into  large  vats  or  bags,  formed  by  attaching  a  bullock's 
hide  by  its  edges  and  four  poles,  and  leaving  it  to  sink  down 
in  the  middle.  I  thought,  as  I  looked  at  the  heap,  that  such 
fine,  ripe,  juicy-looking  fruit  might  have  been  appropriated 
to  a  better  purpose. 

The  place  where  the  grapes  grew  was  at  some  distance, 
but  close  to  this  lone  dwelling,  on  the  border  of  the  wide 
desert,  I  was  delighted  to  find  a  little  spot  inclosed  as  a 
flower-garden,  in,  which  lilies,  gladioluses,  balsams,  cocks- 
combs, stocks,  pinks,  passion-flowers,  very  stunted  dahlias, 
and  other  flowers,  as  well  as  culinary  herbs,  were  growing. 

The  features  of  the  country,  in  the  direction  opposite  to 
the  desert,  were  characterized  by  that  vastness,  massive  so- 
lidity, and  grandeur  which  had  marked  all  the  most  striking 
portions  of  African  scenery  that  I  had  yet  seen,  and  which 
made  the  picturesque  mountains  and  valleys  of  Mauritius 
appear,  in  comparison,  only  like  charming  little  miniature 
models  of  nature.  The  Camdeboo  mountains  lay  a  few 
miles  distant  in  a  northerly  direction,  presenting,  at  different 


238  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vin. 

parts  along  the  range,  the  perpendicular  wall-like  summit 
and  long  flat  top  so  peculiar  to  this  part  of  Africa ;  and  be- 
yond these,  to  the  northeast,  the  loftier  range  of  the  Sneuw- 
berg  stretched  far  away  in  the  distant  horizon. 

Soon  after  noon  we  resumed  our  journey,  and  often  rest- 
ing at  intervals,  twice  crossing  the  Sunday  Eiver,  and  walk- 
ing a  considerable  way  in  the  dark,  we  reached  Graaf  Eeinet 
at  a  late  hour,  having  traveled  during  the  day  about  fifty 
miles.  The  missionary  at  the  station  kindly  welcomed  us, 
and  soon  provided  food  for  the  horses,  and  refreshment  and 
lodging  for  ourselves.  The  rest  of  the  next  day,  which  was 
the  Sabbath,  was  truly  welcome  after  six  days'  traveling. 
The  driver  reported  the  horses  well,  but  very  hungry,  so 
we  hoped  they  would  hold  out,  as  we  had  no  more  deserts 
to  cross. 

In  the  forenoon  I  attended  public  worship,  where  about 
five  hundred  colored  people  assembled  in  their  neat  and 
spacious  stone  chapel,  which  had  been  recently  enlarged. 
It  was  the  day  on  which  the  claims  of  those  who  were 
fighting  the  battles  of  England  in  the  Crimea  were,  accord- 
ing to  previous  announcement,  presented  by  the  missionary 
to  the  notice  of  the  people,  and  their  collection  toward  the 
Patriotic  Fund  in  England  amounted  to  more  than  ten 
pounds.  Collections  of  a  similar  kind  were  about  this  time 
made  in  most  of  the  missionary  congregations  of  people  of 
color,  and  this  was  about  the  sum  which  several  of  them 
contributed,  a  sum  not  indeed  large  in  itself,  but  as  an  ex- 
pression of  sympathy  and  good-feeling  highly  commenda- 
ble. 

The  following  day  we  spent  in  visiting  the  school,  and 
deliberating  with  the  minister  and  the  people  on  the  affairs 
of  the  station,  and  the  more  immediate  objects  of  my  visit. 
On  the  morning  of  the  21st  of  February  we  took  our  de- 
parture, the  good  people  furnishing  us  with  a  team  of  eight 
strong  oxen  to  drag  our  wagon  to  the  top  of  the  Sneuw- 


CHAP.  viii.  GRAAF  REINET.  239 

berg,  an  ascent  of  eight  miles,  and  afterward  to  help  us  on 
a  day's  journey  beyond.  On  our  way  out  of  the  town  we 
called  on  one  of  the  people,  formerly  a  slave,  but  now  liv- 
ing in  a  very  respectable  house,  and  the  proprietor  of  an 
excellent  vineyard,  orchard,  and  other  property.  When 
taking  leave  he  called  me  aside,  and  quietly  gave  me  a 
handsome  silver  snuff-box,  lined  with  gold,  and  with  his 
name  engraved  on  the  lid,  which  he  said  he  wished  me  to 
present  to  the  London  Missionary  Society,  as  an  expression 
of  his-  grateful  feelings  toward  that  institution.  His  wife, 
who  was  also  formerly  a  slave,  in  the  mean  time  brought 
out  a  basket  of  fine  ripe  apples  and  apricots,  for  our  use  on 
the  journey. 

Graaf  Eeinet,  which  we  had  now  left,  is  an  interesting 
place,  admirably  situated  in  a  sort  of  basin  formed  by 
mountains  of  varied  height  and  form,  and  watered  by  the , 
Sunday  Eiver,  by  whose  winding  course  it  is  nearly  sur- 
rounded. Numbers  of  magnificent  oleanders,  Nerium  splen- 
dens,  twelve  or  fourteen  feet  high,  were  in  full  flower,  the 
blossoms  much  darker  colored  than  they  are  ever  seen  in 
England.  Large  weeping- willows  were  growing  luxuriant- 
ly around  the  fountain  in  the  centre  of  the  town,  near  which 
the  compact  and  substantial  mission  buildings  were  situa- 
ted. The  Dutch  Eeformed  Church  here  is  a  fine  building, 
with  steeple  and  spire,  and  stands,  I  presume,  on  the  site  of 
one  in  which,  half  a  century  ago,  the  insurgent  boers  of 
that  day,  then  in  arms  against  the  government,  insisted,  as 
one  of  the  conditions  of  peace,  upon  having  the  pulpit 
washed,  because  in  it  Dr.  Vanderkemp  had,  with  the  sanc- 
tion of  the  commissioner,  preached  to  the  people  of  color 
resorting  to  the  place.  How  great  the  change  produced  by 
fifty  years !  for  now  some  of  the  people  of  color  possess 
considerable  landed  property  in  the  same  place,  live  in  a 
style  of  respectability  and  comfort,  and  occupy  important 
positions,  while  enjoying  the  respect  of  society.  One  of 


240  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAE.  CHAP.  vm. 

them,  a  smith,  has  a  number  of  apprentices  or  journeymen 
always  employed,  among  whom  I  heard  there  was  both  a 
Dutchman  and  an  Englishman,  as  well  as  native  Africans. 

Besides  the  friends  more  immediately  connected  with  the 
missions,  I  had  the  pleasure,  during  my  short-  stay,  of  mak- 
ing the  acquaintance  of  the  esteemed  clergyman  of  the 
Dutch  Keformed  Church,  Mr.  Murray,  and  his  excellent 
family. 

During  the  remainder  of  the  week  we  traveled  through 
the  rocky  passes  of  the  Sneuwberg  mountains,  and  over  a 
succession  of  plains  descending  toward  the  boundary  of  the 
colony.  The  roads  during  the  first  part  of  the  journey 
were  unusually  bad,  lying  along  mountain  gorges,  and 
loose,  broken,  rocky  ground,  often  intersected  by  deep  gul- 
lies or  water-courses,  in  one  of  which  we  passed  a  loaded 
wagon  set  fast  and  broken.  The  weather  was  also  exceed- 
ingly cold,  with  occasional  storms  of  thunder,  lightning,  and 
rain  among  the  mountains,  which,  though  they  appeared  to 
us  of  considerable  size  and  height,  were  only  the  peaks  and 
summits  of  the  Sneuwberg  as  seen  from  the  plains  below. 
On  the  second  day  we  passed  through  a  flight  of  locusts  of 
considerable  extent,  and  so  numerous,  that,  except  in  color, 
they  resembled  a  thickly  falling  snow-storm.  At  first  our 
horses  were  much  excited,  and  disposed  to  wheel  about,  but 
afterward,  though  uneasy,  they  were  kept  on  their  way. 
"We  succeeded  in  obtaining  provender  at  the  few  farm- 
houses which  we  passed,  and  generally  halted  for  the  night 
where  water  was  to  be  obtained,  cooking  our  evening  meal 
by  starlight  on  the  road  side,  and  sleeping  in  the  wagon. 
Oar  plan  was  to  start  by  daylight,  to  halt  during  the  heat 
of  the  day,  and  to  journey  late  in  the  evening. 

On  the  morning  of  the  third  day,  having  descended  from 
the  mountain  heights,  we  saw,  as  the  morning  mist  cleared 
away,  vast  herds  of  springboks,  Antilope  euchore,  a  species 
of  antelope,  beautifully  formed,  and  graceful  in  all  its  move- 


CHAP.  vm.  SPRINGBOKS.— GNUS.  241 

ments.  Besides  these,  there  were  herds  of  gnus,  Antilope 
gnu,  feeding  in  the  plains  on  either  side  of  us ;  with  num- 
bers of  tall  birds,  the  Anthropoides  Stanley ajius,  or  Caffre 
crane.  The  gnus  were  not  a  quarter  of  a  mile  before  us, 
and  continued  quietly  grazing  until  we  were  within  two  or 
three  hundred  yards  of  them,  when  they  cocked  up  their 
tails  and  cantered  away.  They  were  all  of  a  tawny  brown 
color,  with  the  ends  of  their  tails  white.  In  their  size  and 
their  paces  they  looked  more  like  ponies  with  excessive 
hog  manes,  than  animals  of  the  ox  species.  During  the 
day  we  passed  herd  after  herd,  varying  in  number  from 
five  to  twenty  in  each,  including  the  young  ones.  The 
springboks  frequently  crossed  the  road  only  a  short  dis- 
tance before  us,  passing  along  by  a  succession  of  bounds,  or 
vaulting  leaps,  with  remarkable  rapidity  and  gracefulness. 
Mile  after  mile  these  beautiful  animals  appeared  in  varied 
numbers,  scattered  over  the  plains  on  either  side.  On  our 
way  we  passed  the  wagon  of  a  traveling  boer,  and  pur- 
chased of  him  half  a  sheep  and  some  flesh  of  the  gnu  for 
our  men. 

About  eleven  o'clock,  on  the  same  morning,  we  crossed 
a  rushy,  muddy,  but  rather  deep  stream,  called  Seacow's 
Eiver,  and  soon  afterward,  reaching  a  farm-house,  we  sent  a 
man  to  ask  if  we  could  procure  forage  for  our  cattle,  and  a 
little  bread  for  ourselves.  The  man  returned  to  say  that 
our  wants  could  be  supplied,  and  we  were  invited  to  alight. 
On  reaching  the  house,  a  scene  of  refinement  and  taste,  for 
which  we  had  not  been  prepared,  burst  upon  our  view. 
We  were  ushered  into  a  nice  elegantly-furnished  room,  on 
the  walls  of  which  hung  some  good  pictures.  A  number  of 
elegantly -bound  volumes  lay  on  the  table,  where  also  there 
was  a  shallow  dish  filled  with  fresh  and  fragrant  flowers. 
Two  young  ladies  welcomed  us,  and  in  a  minute  or  two  a 
tall  gentlemanly  man  entered,  who  bade  us  welcome  in  fine 
English,  and  pressed  us  to  take  breakfast,  which  was  soon 

Q 


242  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vm. 

dispensed  with  true  English  hospitality  and  kindness  by  his 
daughter,  while  we  conversed  with  our  host.  Alluding  to 
the  animals  we  had  seen;  he  said  that  at  certain  seasons, 
when  drought  prevailed  in  other  parts,  the  springboks 
came  down  to  this  neighborhood  in  thousands;  that  he 
had  sometimes  shot  forty  in  one  day.  He  said  they  were 
very  destructive,  and  that,  though  by  strict  watching  they 
might  be  kept  from  the  crops  during  the  day,  they  could 
not  be  kept  off  by  night,  and  sometimes  devoured  the 
whole  of  the  grain,  and  every  other  green  thing. 

Our  conversation  then  turned  upon  colonial  affairs,  and 
afterward  on  the  war  in  Europe,  the  alliance  between  En- 
gland and  France,  with  the  politics  and  literature  of  England. 
Our  host  told  us  his  name  was  Gilfillan,  and  asked  if  I  knew 
whether  the  author  of  the  "  Bards  of  the  Bible"  was  from 
Selkirk.  On  learning  that  I  expected  soon  to  return  to 
England,  he  said  he  should  like  to  visit  the  old  country  again, 
but  supposed  he  never  should.  I  wanted  to  look  over  his 
garden,  but  the  tune  had  passed  so  rapidly  in  this  unlooked- 
for  oasis,  that  we  felt  obliged  to  bid  our  friends  a  hasty  fare- 
well and  depart.  The  place  is  called  Wonder  Hill,  from  a 
singular  conical  mountain  rising  near  the  house. 

Passing  along,  after  our  departure,  over  the  same  treeless 
region,  we  reached,  in  the  afternoon  of  the  24th  of  February, 
the  frontier  village  of  Colesberg.  There  we  spent  a  pleasant 
Sabbath  with  M.  De  Kok,  and  on  Monday  afternoon  pur- 
sued our  way  toward  the  Orange  Eiver,  twenty  miles  distant, 
where  we  arrived  the  same  evening. 

On  approaching  the  river  we  found  it  impassable.  A 
number  of  families,  with  their  wagons,  were  waiting  on 
both  sides  for  the  subsiding  of  the  swollen  waters.  The 
man  in  charge  of  the  ferry  told  us  it  had  not  been  passed 
since  Saturday,  and  that  it  was  uncertain  when  the  flood 
would  subside.  "We  walked  to  the  side  of  the  stream,  but 
the  violence  and  noise  with  which  the  turbid  waters  rolled 


CHAP.  vra.  FRESHET  IN  ORANGE  RIVER.  243 

along  afforded  little  hope  of  a  speedy  passage  to  the  oppo- 
site shore.  The  scene  along  the  banks  presented  a  curious 
spectacle.  We  seemed  to  be  in  the  midst  of  a  wide  en- 
campment. Gipsy  fires  gleamed  in  every  direction  along 
the  borders  of  the  stream,  throwing  their  strong  but  flick- 
ering light  upon  the  groups  of  swarthy  figures  employed  in 
cooking  the  evening  meal,  strongly  contrasting  with  the 
white  tents  or  canvas  coverings  of  the  different  vehicles. 
Cattle  in  abundance  lay  chewing  the  cud,  or  sleeping  around 
the  wagons  of  their  owners,  and  a  number  of  children  were 
playing  on  the  broad  sands  between  these  and  the  edge  of 
the  water,  mingling  their  shouts  and  Daughter  with  the  oc- 
casional barking  of  the  dogs  and  the  voices  of  the  men. 
We  added  our  fire  to  the  number  already  burning;  and, 
after  drinking  tea  by  moonlight,  spread  our  beds  in  the 
wagon  and  lay  down  to  rest. 

The  next  morning  disclosed  little  if  any  diminution  of 
the  stream,  which  appeared  to  be  about  three  hundred  yards 
wide,  though  on  our  side  it  had  subsided  more  than  fifty 
yards  from  the  line  which  at  one  time  it  had  reached.  Some 
of  the  mimosa-trees,  which  generally  grow  ten  or  twelve  feet 
high,  were  more  than  half  covered ;  and  trees  of  tSalix  Ga- 
riepiana,  the  weeping-willow  peculiar  to  the  banks  of  the 
Gariep  or  Orange  Eiver,  growing  several  yards  nearer  the 
centre  of  the  stream,  exhibited  only  their  tops,  their  trunks 
and  lower  branches  being  still  under  water.  Piles  of  drift- 
wood on  the  opposite  side,  as  well  as  marks  on  the  rocky 
banks  to  the  eastward,  showed  that  the  water  had  recently 
been  many  feet  higher  than  at  present.  One  of  the  boers 
informed  us  that  the  flood  had  washed  down  two  men,  one 
of  them  a  Caffre,  with  eight  horses,  two  cows,  and  a  gnu, 
all  dead.  We  afterward  saw  a  dead  springbok  floating 
down  the  middle  of  the  stream. 

Turning  from  the  river,  a  new  and  singular  scene  pre- 
sented itself.  A  level  space,  thinly  overspread  with  mimosa 


244  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  \     CHAP.  vin. 

bushes,  extended  about  one  hundred  yards  toward  high, 
steep,  and  sometimes  overhanging  basaltic  rocks.  On  the 
left,  two  caverns,  the  entrances  of  which  were  screened  by 
a  mat  or  piece  of  cloth  hung  across  a  stick,  constituted  the 
dwelling-place  of  some  Hottentot  families.  The  men  be- 
longing to  them  were  employed  about  the  ferry;  and  a 
small  space,  inclosed  with  a  wall  of  loose  stones,  formed 
their  pen  or  fold,  into  which  a  few  goats  were  driven  at 
night.  Nearer  the  water  were  one  or  'two  huts  belonging 
to  the  man  in  charge  of  the  ferry ;  and,  still  farther  to  the 
right,  the  wagons  or  tents  of  the  boers,  with  a  number  of 
more  fragile  sleeping-places  for  the  colored  people  attend- 
ing them.  There  were  on  our  side  of  the  river  eleven  wag- 
ons and  a  couple  of  carts,  forming  quite  a  village.  As  I 
passed  along  I  noticed  recently-killed  sheep,  or  parts  of 
carcasses,  and  long  strips  of  flesh  hanging  from  the  branch- 
es of  the  mimosa  bushes  around  the  wagons  which  consti- 
tuted the  movable  houses  of  their  owners.  The  horses, 
oxen,  and  sheep  had  gone  forth  to  graze;  but  the  kids 
skipped  about  among  the  rocks,  and  the  hens  and  chickens 
were  busily  occupied  under  the  wagons.  A  number  of 
men  were  engaged  in  shaping  the  trunk  of  a  tree  into  a 
windlass  for  the  large  ferry-boat ;  and  some  good  matronly- 
looking  women  were  at  their  needle-work  under  a  spread- 
ing mimosa,  having  a  polished  rosewood  work-box  open  on 
the  sand  before  them.  Not  far  off  a  stout  young  farmer 
was  nursing  a  baby  in  a  long  white  frock ;  and,  in  the  rear, 
Hottentot  mothers  were  attending  to  their  infants;  while 
the  larger  children  were  rolling  about  on  the  sand.  Near 
most  of  the  wagons  was  a  fire-place,  generally  composed  of 
three  stones  fixed  in  the  sand,  and  around  these  fire-places 
the  Hottentot  servants  were  preparing  the  morning  meal. 
Most  of  the  parties  had  tea-kettles,  and  tea  or  coffee  seemed 
to  be  in  general  use.  "When  the  food  was  prepared,  it  was 
carried  to  the  shady  side  of  an  adjacent  bush,  where  the 


CHAP.  vm.  CROSS  THE  ORANGE.  245 

family  gathered  around  it.  In  the  afternoon  the  men 
brought  in  bundles  of  fire-wood,  and  the  women  fetched 
water  from  the  river,  carrying  tall  jars,  or  other  vessels, 
full  of  water,  upon  their  heads,  without  any  "support  from 
their  hands.  I  "was  often  struck  during  this  journey  by  the 
perfect  ease  with  which  a  Hottentot  woman  walked  along 
with  one  hand  resting  on  her  hip,  and  the  other  hanging 
by  her  side,  and  with  a  tall  jar  of  water,  full  to  the  brim, 
upon  her  head. 

Toward  evening  the  cattle,  horses,  sheep,  and  goats  were 
driven  home,  generally  lying  for  the  night  around  the  wag- 
ons. "When  the  herds  were  brought  home  the  fires  were 
kindled  and  the  evening  meal  prepared.  After  supper  the 
young  people,  white  and  colored,  amused  themselves  to- 
gether in  some  noisy,  boisterous  game,  frequently  repre- 
senting the  exploits  of  hunting ;  and  by  nine  o'clock  all  re- 
tired to  rest. 

My  companion  and  I  conformed  to  the  customs  of  our 
neighbors,  so  far  as  to  take  our  meals  in  the  same  manner 
and  about  the  same  time.  The  weather  was  fine,  the  even- 
ings pleasant,  and,  during  the  few  days  that  we  remained 
here,  I  became  quite  reconciled  to  this  out-of-doors  life.  In 
my  wanderings  during  the  day  I  found,  under  the  shelter 
of  the  rocks  in  the  neighborhood,  some  beautiful  ferns, 
among  them  a  new  variety  of  Gldclienm  and  Platyloma  ca- 
lomelanos,  seed  fructified  fronds  of  which  I  was  so  fortunate 
as  to  secure  for  the  purpose  of  taking  home. 

Having  waited  from  Monday  until  Thursday,  the  1st  of 
March,  and  seeing  no  immediate  prospect  of  getting  our 
wagon  over  the  river,  we  left  it  and  crossed  in  a  small  boat 
to  the  opposite  side.  Here  we  found  a  number  of  persons 
detained,  and  among  them  a  young  bridegroom  elect  on  his 
way  to  be  married.  Soon  after  noon  Mr.  Solomon,  the  mis- 
sionary from  Philippolis,  arrived,  and  in  the  evening  we  ac- 
companied him  on  horseback  to  his  station.  The  four  fol- 


246  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vm. 

lowing  days  we  passed  at  Philippolis,  where  we  were  much 
gratified  with  the  spirit  and  the  general  feeling  manifested 
by  the  people;  while,  on  our  part,  every  endeavor  was 
made  to  encourage  them  with  regard  to  the  future.  Their 
country  is  fertile,  their  grazing-ground  good,  and  it  is  said 
that  they  possess  eight  or  ten  thousand  horses,  besides  oth- 
er stock.  They  bid  fair  to  be  a  prosperous  people,  could 
they  but  feel  security,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  recent 
proceedings  in  connection  with  the  Orange  Eiver  territory, 
of  which  they  so  loudly  complain,  will  be  reviewed,  and 
thus  the  evils  they  so  justly  fear  be  averted,  and  the  wrong 
they  have  suffered  be  redressed.  Owing  to  the  discourage- 
ment so  naturally  felt,  their  settlement  was  not  in  such 
good  order  as  it  might  otherwise  have  been ;  but  several 
persons  were  building  good  houses,  and  they  seemed  very 
much  in  earnest  in  their  endeavors  to  secure  the  best  possi- 
ble means  of  future  improvement  and  safety.  One  of  these 
measures  was  the  thorough  education  of  their  children ; 
and,  in  order  to  effect  this,  they  sent  a  wagon  and  two 
team,  or  twenty-four  oxen,  to  Cape  Town,  to  bring  down  a 
well-qualified  schoolmaster  and  his  family  to  reside  among 
them,  guaranteeing  him  the  means  of  comfortable  support. 
The  public  religious  services  on  the  Sabbath  day  were 
well  attended  here.  Upward  of  a  hundred  wagons,  bring- 
ing families  from  a  distance  of  five,  ten,  or  even  twenty 
miles,  arrived  on  the  Saturday  evening,  and  on  the  follow- 
ing morning  the  church,  capable  of  holding  about  700  per- 
sons, was  filled,  while  many  remained  outside.  The  ordi- 
nance of  the  Lord's  Supper  was  afterward  administered, 
and  in  the  afternoon  Mr.  Edwards,  who  had  arrived  on  the 
previous  evening  from  an  adjacent  station,  preached  to  a 
considerable  number  of  Betchuanas  in  their  own  language. 
The  religious  proceedings  of  the  day  included  the  baptism 
of  two  Griquas,  and,  on  the  following  morning,  a  young 
couple  were  publicly  married,  receiving,  as  they  retired,  the 


CHAP.  vni.  RETURN  SOUTHWARD.  247 

congratulations  of  a  number  of  their  friends,  including  some 
of  the  chief  people  of  the  place.  We  closed  the  religious 
engagements  of  the  day  by  a  devotional  meeting  at  the 
missionary's  house,  where  we  were  joined  by  two  or  three 
English  friends  from  the  neighborhood.  The  last  day  was 
spent  in  public  deliberations  with  the  people,  who  expressed 
themselves  deeply  sensible  of  their  obligations  to  the  Chris- 
tians in  England  for  the  religious  instruction  they  had  long 
been  receiving,  and  they  engaged  for  the  future  to  provide 
these  advantages  for  themselves.  They  also  expressed  their 
hopes  of  being  able,  at  no  distant  period,  to  assist  the  society 
in  its  widely-extended  operations.  "We  had  hoped  to  have 
extended  our  journey  to  Griqua  town,  and  I  had  previously 
written  to  Mr.  Moffat,  and  other  missionaries,  to  meet  us 
there ;  but  the  difficulty  of  obtaining  horses,  on  account  of 
the  sickness  and  the  state  of  the  Yaal  Eiver  beyond  Philip- 
polis,  which  had  not  been  passable  for  some  time,  deprived 
us  of  the  pleasure  of  meeting  these  friends,  and  obliged  us 
to  turn  our  steps  back  toward  the  colony. 

Late  in  the  evening  we  took  leave  of  the  hospitable  mis- 
sionary and  his  family,  and,  after  receiving  many  expressions 
of  good-will  from  the  people  of  the  place,  proceeded  in  a 
wagon  drawn  by  six  horses,  which  they  kindly  lent  us, 
toward  the  Orange  Eiver,  where  we  arrived  soon  after  mid- 
night. 

Early  the  next  morning  we  recrossed  the  river  without 
difficulty,  and  found  the  encampment  we  had  left  five  days 
before,  broken  up  and  dispersed.  As  soon  as  our  horses 
were  harnessed  we  commenced  our  journey  southward ;  but, 
although  we  stopped  at  two  houses  on  the  road,  we  obtained 
no  forage  until  near  sunset,  when  we  reached  a  place  called 
Driefontayn.  Here,  our  cattle  were  not  only  well  cared  for, 
but,  by  the  hospitality  of  the  good  people,  we  ourselves 
were  provided  with  a  good  supper  and  comfortable  bed.  In 
the  room  in  which  we  sat  I  noticed  a  Dutch  translation  of 


248  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  YHL 

one  of  our  most  useful  little  books,  "  The  Sinner's  Friend," 
lying  on  the  table  with  the  Bible,  and  there  was  something 
very  pleasing  in  the  simple,  unobtrusive  piety  of  the  family. 
After  we  had  retired  to  rest  I  heard  one  of  the  young  peo- 
ple reading  the  Bible,  and  all  afterward  uniting  in  their 
evening  hymn ;  and  again  the  next  morning,  before  it  was 
fully  light,  the  sound  of  their  morning  hymn  and  Scripture 
reading  was  heard.  A  cup  of  coffee  was  soon  afterward 
provided  for  us,  and  our  host,  who,  we  had  learned,  was  a 
descendant  of  the  French  refugees,  having  understood  that 
we  were  traveling  on  a  religious  errand,  refused  any  recom- 
pense for  the  accommodation  he  had  so  cheerfully  furnished 
both  for  us  and  our  horses. 

At  a  farm-house,  where  we  stopped  during  the  forenoon 
to  procure  food  for  our  horses,  we  were  again  refreshed  with 
coffee,  which  seemed  to  be  always  ready,  standing  in  a  brass 
or  copper  kettle  over  a  dish  of  burning  charcoal.  The  good 
Dutch  farmer  here  made  a  number  of  inquiries,  which  we 
were  unable  to  satisfy,  respecting  the  price  of  wool  at  Port 
Elizabeth.  He  told  us  he  possessed  8000  fine-wooled  sheep, 
and  that  his  people  were  shearing  in  a  sort  of  barn  opposite, 
on  entering  which  we  saw  three  white  men,  and  as  many 
natives,  busily  at  work.  The  legs  of  the  animals  were  tied, 
and  the  sheep,  whose  wool  the  white  men  were  removing, 
were  laid  on  a  bench,  so  that  the  shearers  stood  upright. 
The  natives  had  their  sheep  laid  on  the  floor.  The  farmer 
told  us  a  good  workman  would  shear  thirty  or  forty  sheep 
in  a  day,  and  that  each  fleece  contained  about  three  pounds 
of  wool.  The  sheep  were  unwashed.  The  master  said  that 
at  Colsberg  he  obtained  sixpence  per  pound  for  unwashed 
wool,  and  for  that  which  was  clean  a  shilling ;  but  observed 
that  he  had  too  many  sheep  to  be  able  to  wash  them. 

The  weather  was  rainy  and  cold  during  this  part  of  our 
journey,  and  provender  scarce.  On  Friday  we  stopped  for 
the  night  at  the  house  of  a  hospitable  English  family  of 


CHAP.  vin.  CKADOCK.  249 

the  name  of  Trollope,  residing  at  a  place  called  Saltpansdrift. 
Here  an  unexpected  flash  of  home-feeling  came  over  me, 
when,  looking  over  a  neat,  well-filled  bookcase  in  the  room, 
I  saw,  among  other  well-bound  books,  "  The  Women  of 
England,"  and  a  number  of  other  equally  familiar  volumes 
by  the  same  writer,  which  I  had  little  expected  to  meet 
with  in  this  remote  part  of  Africa. 

In  the  afternoon  of  the  9th  of  March  we  reached  Cradock, 
the  chief  place  of  the  district  of  the  same  name,  and  pleas- 
antly situated  on  the  banks  of  the  Great  Fish  Eiver.  The 
scenery,  as  we  approached  the  village,  was  unusually  attract- 
ive. Two  lofty  table-shaped  mountains  called  the  Speck- 
boom  Mountains  rose  on  the  right.  On  the  left  appeared  a 
picturesque  range  called  the  Eland  Mountains ;  and  to  the 
north  and  east  the  Screw  Mountains,  so  called  from  the 
tortuous  road  leading  through  them ;  and  the  Morai  Mount- 
ains. Some  of  these  presented  outlines  of  unusual  beauty, 
exhibiting  perpendicularly -formed  sides,  with  verdant  and 
sli  ghtly-fl attened  summits.  Trees,  and  vineyards  now  loaded 
with  ripe  grapes,  were  numerous  in  the  town ;  the  houses 
were  not  large  but  respectable ;  the  population  is  said  to 
be  about  1500,  of  whom  nearly  two  thirds  were  persons  of 
color. 

We  took  up  our  abode  with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Taylor,  whom  I 
had  previously  known ;  and  were  glad  of  a  short  season  of 
rest  after  our  fatiguing  journey.  I  found  my  good  friend, 
among  many  discouragements,  still  cheered  by  instances  of 
success  in  his  missionary  work.  After  spending  Sunday 
very  pleasantly  at  the  station,  and  endeavoring  to  encourage 
the  missionary  and  people,  we  continued  our  journey.  Mrs. 
Munro,  the  widow  of  an  excellent  missionary,  kindly  fur- 
nished us  with  a  basket  of  grapes ;  and  Mr.  Taylor  accom- 
panied us  for  some  distance  to  prevent  our  mistaking  the 
road.  We  then  traveled  through  a  pleasant  and  partially 
wooded  country,  but  over  a  rough  stony  road ;  and,  passing 


250  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAE.  CHAP.  vm. 

the  Great  Fish  and  the  Tarka  Elvers,  between  five  and  six 
o'clock,  reached,  near  Daggerboers  hoek,  a  neat-looking 
stone  house,  with  Hotel  written  over  the  door. 

The  house  was  kept  by  Mr.  Maskell,  an  Englishman  who 
had  formerly  resided  as  a  trader  at  one  of  the  missionary 
stations.  He  received  us  courteously,  and  expressed  sur- 
prise that  we  had  kept  the  same  horses  all  the  way  from 
Cape  Town.  We  found  that  a  kind  of  epidemic  had  been 
raging  among  the  horses  in  the  districts  through  which  we 
had  passed,  and  had  caused  such  destruction  that  traveling 
was  exceedingly  difficult.  Most  of  the  public  conveyances 
had  been  discontinued,  and  many  farms  were  almost  entire- 
ly destitute  of  horses.  This  disease  had  been  very  severe 
in  many  parts  of  the  colony,  especially  along  the  road  which 
we  had  traveled  in  this  day,  where  a  dead  horse  or  a  dead 
ox  was  frequently  to  be  seen.  One  day,  in  particular,  we 
passed  many;  and  observed  several  places  in  the  bush 
where  nothing  but  the  bones  were  left,  the  bodies  having 
been  burned  to  prevent  contagion.  On  the  farm  adjoining 
Mr.  Maskell's,  only  thirteen  horses  remained  out  of  fifty. 
Another  farmer  near  had  lost  all.  Mr.  Maskell  had  only 
one  left.  So  far  ours  had  escaped ;  but  we  became  every 
day  more  apprehensive  of  losing  them.  Mr.  Maskell  led 
us  into  a  nice  clean  parlor,  well  furnished  with  bookcases ; 
and  among  the  pictures  on  the  walls  I  noticed  a  good  por- 
trait of  the  late  Mr.  Wilberforce,  and  another  of  the  vener- 
able Eowland  Hill. 

In  our  journey  the  next  day,  which  lay  for  the  most  part 
over  an  exceedingly  bad  road  covered  almost  continually 
with  loose  stones,  we  halted  near  a  bend  in  the  Fish  Eiver, 
when  a  number  of  Fingoes  came  to  our  wagon,  bringing 
for  sale  honey  and  some  milk,  which  we  readily  purchased, 
and  found  very  good-tasted.  I  had  frequently  observed 
the  curious  resorts  of  the  bees,  and  had  more  than  once 
been  attracted  toward  them  by  the  call  of  the  honey-bird, 


CHAP.  viu.  VENOMOUS  SNAKES.  251 

which  Pringle  has  so  graphically  and  amusingly  described 
in  a  note  to  one  of  his  African  poems ;  but  this  was  the 
first  time  I  had  obtained  any  honey  during  my  journey. 
The  natives  sometimes  manifest  great  shrewdness  in  dis- 
covering the  haunts  of  the  bees.  One  of  them,  going  to  a 
fountain,  saw  some  grains  of  pollen  on  the  grass,  and  said, 
"A  bee  has  been  here  to  drink,  and  there  must  be  honey 
in  the  neigborhood :"  this  he  ultimately  discovered  to  be 
the  case.  Toward  evening  we  passed  Eodewall,  where 
Pringle  and  his  party  were  so  hospitably  entertained  on 
the  way  to  their  location,  and  soon  after  reached  Orange 
Grove,  the  residence  of  Mr.  James  Hart,  where  we  halted 
for  the  night. 

His  dwelling  lies  in  a  sort  of  wooded  hollow  at  the  base 
of  the  Bosch  Mountains,  a  neighborhood  said  to  be  much 
infested  with  reptiles  and  ferocious  animals,  and,  on  my  re- 
turn rather  late  from  a  botanizing  excursion  in  a  lonely 
dell,  we  heard  many  accounts  of  the  injuries  they  had  in- 
flicted. The  day  before  our  arrival  a  cobra  de  capella  had 
sprung  at  a  man  who  was  cutting  poles  in  a  glen  not  far 
from  the  house,  and  a  short  time  before  two  Caffre  children 
were  sitting  on  the  ground  outside  their  hut,  when  a  snake 
came  out  of  a  hole  and  bit  one  of  them,  who  died  in  less 
than  three  hours.  When  bitten  by  a  venomous  snake,  the 
natives  seek  a  person  called  a  poison-sucker,  generally  a 
bushman,  as  these  people  suck  the  wound  with  impunity. 
If  no  poison-sucker  is  at  hand,  they  cut  open  a  live  fowl  at 
the  breast,  and  press  the  cut  surface  against  the  wounded 
part,  when  the  fowl  soon  dies;  another  is  then  applied; 
and  the  process  is  thus  continued  until  no  effect  is  pro- 
duced on  the  fowl.  This  neighborhood  was  also  the  resort 
of  great  numbers  of  jackals  and  wolves ;  the  latter  were 
very  destructive  to  foals,  and  had  been  known  to  attack  a 
horse.  Our  host  had  adopted  the  plan  of  ridding  himself 
of  these  enemies  by  poison.  He  told  us  that  about  two 

I 


252  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vm. 

years  before  he  had  got  some  mix  vomica  and  other  poi- 
sons, mixed  them  with  tallow,  and  inclosed  small  lumps  of 
this  mixture  in  pieces  of  the  entrails  of  sheep,  which  he 
dragged  about  his  yard  in  the  evening,  and  then  hung 
upon  a  bush,  afterward  dropping  pieces  containing  poison 
along  the  track.  The  first  morning  after  he  had  done  this, 
fifteen  jackals,  and  a  number  of  wolves,  were  found  dead 
about  the  premises.  The  leopards,  which  are  also  called 
tigers,  and  which  are  much  more  formidable  neighbors, 
would  not  take  the  poison.  About  a  year  before  our  visit 
a  leopard  had  killed  a  horse  on  the  adjacent  farm.  Wild 
guinea-fowls  are  numerous  in  this  district,  and  there  are 
numbers  of  the  useful  secretary-birds,  which  may  some- 
times be  seen  flying  along  with  a  snake  in  their  talons. 

During  the  late  war  this  part  of  the  country  was  for 
some  time  in  the  hands  of  the  CafTres,  and  the  brother  of 
our  hostess  was  killed  not  a  mile  from  the  house.  Many 
frightful  tragedies  were  then  enacted,  some  of  the  details 
of  which  we  had  repeatedly  heard  since  we  had  been  in 
the  district.  I  was  much  affected  by  the  accounts  I  re- 
ceived of  the  number  of  Caffre  prisoners  who  died.  Mr. 
Hart  said  he  visited  the  place  where  a  great  number  of 
them  were,  and  proposed  to  several  mothers  to  take  their 
children,  and  feed  and  care  for  them,  urging  them  to  com- 
ply rather  than  keep  them  and  die ;  but,  although  thus  re- 
peatedly urged,  not  one  would  give  up  her  child,  but  de- 
clared they  would  rather  keep  them  to  die  than  give  them 
to  the  white  man.  He  said  that  many  children  perished 
with  their  mothers  from  hunger  or  starvation,  self-inflicted. 
Nothing  is  so  sacred  as  human  life ;  no  law  of  human  na- 
ture so  strong  as  that  of  self-preservation ;  and  there  must 
have  been  a  more  than  ordinary  cause  for  such  a  choice. 
Before  the  war  commenced,  all  Mr.  Hart's  servants  depart- 
ed during  the  night,  leaving  behind  the  cows  and  goats 
which  they  had  acquired  by  their  servitude.  -A,mong  his 


CHAP.  vm.  SOMERSET.— GLEN  AVON.  253 

servants  was  a  Bushman,  his  wife,  and  his  aged  mother. 
At  the  approach  of  the  war,  the  son  took  his  mother  and 
placed  her  in  a  chasm  between  two  rocks,  leaving  her  there 
to  die ;  and  when  his  fellow-servants  had  expostulated  with 
him  in  vain,  they  brought  the  poor  woman  away,  and,  at 
the  time  of  our  visit,  she  was  still  living  with  her  son  and 
his  wife  on  the  farm. 

The  horse-sickness  was  at  this  time  so  severe  in  the 
neighborhood  that  we  left  our  horses  at  Orange  Grove,  and 
proceeded  with  oxen  to  Somerset,  now  a  thriving  village, 
but  formerly  a  government  farm,  for  many  years  under  the 
charge  of  Mr.  Hart,  the  father  of  our  host  at  Orange  Grove. 
Here  I  passed  the  Sunday  with  Mr.  Gregrowsky,  the  mis- 
sionary, and  his  family ;  and  was  pleased  with  the  earnest- 
ness of  some  of  the  people  who  applied  for  additional 
means  for  the  education  of  their  children.  Before  leav- 
ing I  also  visited  the  beautiful  and  extensive  farm  of  Glen 
Avon,  about  four  miles  from  Somerset,  where  I  was  hospi- 
tably entertained  by  Mr.  Hart,  sen.,  and  his  daughter  Mrs. 
Stretch.  I  felt  great  pleasure  in  being  under  the  roof  of 
this  venerable  patriarch,  who  had  been  sixty  years  in  the 
colony,  and  whose  name  I  had  long  held  in  high  esteem  on 
account  of  the  kindness  he  had  shown  to  two  justly  valued 
friends — one  of  them  Mr.  Williams,  the  devoted  missionary 
to  the  Caffres,  whom  I  had  known  in  England,  and  whose 
name,  although  he  has  been  dead  six-and-thirty  years,  is  still 
cherished  with  grateful  affection  by  the  people  among  whom 
he  labored.  The  widow  of  this  devoted  man,  suddenly  and 
unexpectedly  left  alone  with  two  helpless  infants,  among 
what  were  then  designated  a  savage  and  murderous  people, 
had  herself  to  instruct  them  how  to  make  a  rude  coffin  and 
to  dig  a  solitary  grave  for  the  remains  of  her  departed  hus- 
band ;  and  it  was  in  this  season  of  loneliness  and  trial  that 
she  found  a  prompt  and  faithful  friend  in  Mr.  Hart.  Hear- 
ing of  her  calamity,  he  hastened  to  the  spot  at  the  peril  of 


254  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  vm. 

his  own  life,  endeavoring,  with  words  of  kindness,  to  soothe 
her  anguish,  and  finally  conveying  herself  and  her  children, 
with  sympathy  and  tenderness,  from  the  dreary  scene  of 
her  recent  bereavement  to  a  place  of  shelter  and  comfort. 
The  other  valued  friend,  who  had  subsequently  experienced 
the  kindness  of  Mr.  Hart,  was  Thomas  Pringle,  one  of  the 
gentlest  and  kindest  of  men,  to  whose  pure  benevolence  and 
high  and  noble  Christian  principle  South  Africa  is  greatly 
indebted  for  some  of  her  present  dearest  privileges;  to  whose 
memory  is  due  a  tribute  which  has  yet  to  be  paid,  but  which, 
I  feel  assured,  the  growing  love  of  liberty  and  right  in  that 
rapidly  rising  community  will  not  allow  to  be  either  over- 
looked or  forgotten. 

Glen  Avon  is  distinguished  by  fine  specimens  of  European 
trees  and  magnificent  orchards.  I  never  saw  such  a  collec- 
tion of  noble  orange-trees,  literally  loaded  with  fruit,  some 
of  which  was  just  beginning  to  turn  yellow.  Mr.  Hart  told 
me  his  son  had  sold  last  year  200,000  oranges,  which  were 
carried  away  by  wagonfuls,  and  sometimes  several  wagon- 
fuls  at  a  time,  to  different  parts  of  the  colony ;  and  he  added 
that  during  the  coming  season  he  expected  to  have  a  still 
larger  crop. 

In  our  walks,  we  came  upon  a  retired  dell  in  a  sort  of 
rocky  recess,  high  above  a  rippling  stream  that  wound  its 
almost  noiseless  way  among  the  stones  of  the  wood-covered 
valley  beLow ;  and  while  I  was  looking  at  the  fruit-bearing 
olive,  the  only  one  I  had  seen  growing  by  the  side  of  the 
wild  olive  of  the  African  wood,  I  noticed  a  neat  stone-facing 
of  rock- work  round  a  massive  door.  This,  I  learned,  was 
the  last  resting-place  of  the  owner's  family — a  tomb  within 
whose  precincts  the  remains  of  his  wife  were  already  laid. 
An  unusually  solemn  feeling  came  over  me  while  standing 
talking  with  one  who,  in  the  course  of  nature,  would  so  soon 
be  resting  in  peaceful  silence  there.  It  was  a  spot  appar- 
ently formed  by  nature  for  such  a  purpose — a  quiet  shel- 


CHAP.  viu.  AT  OKANGE  GROVE.  255 

tered  nook,  suck  as  one  would  choose  for  the  last  long  rest- 
ing-place in  death.  I  more  than  once  had  occasion  to  notice 
this  novel  feature  of  a  South  African  house,  as  when  I  visited 
the  tomb  of  Mr.  Anderson's  family  at  Pecaltsdorp,  and  that 
of  Dr.  Philip's  family  at  Hankey,  as  well  as  that  of  Mr. 
Hart's  family  here. 

Leaving  the  missionary  and  the  valued  friends  we  had 
met  with  at  Somerset,  we  returned  to  Orange  Grove.  Al- 
though some  horses  had  died  at  Somerset  since  our  arrival, 
our  own  were  still  safe ;  but  as  we  were  now  proceeding 
toward  the  eastern  frontier  and  Caffreland,  and  our  driver 
expressed  his  doubts  of  two  of  them,  as  to  whether  they 
would  be  able  to  travel  much  farther,  we  disposed  of  them 
to  Mr.  Hart,  and  received  from  him,  as  exchange  in  part, 
ten  good  strong  oxen  with  which  to  pursue  our  journey. 


256  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  ix. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

Journey  to  Blinkwater. — Beacon  Hill. — Intercourse  with  Mr.  Van  Royer 
and  the  People. — Arrival  at  Philipton. — Venomous  Serpents. — Instances 
of  their  Power  over  their  Prey. — Intercourse  with  the  People  of  the  Set- 
tlement.— Gratifying  Effects  of  the  Visit  from  the  Governor  of  the  Colo- 
ny.— Sunday  at  the  Kat  River. — Farewell  View  of  the  Settlement. — 
Knapp's  Hope  in  Caffreland. — Site  of  Dr.  Vanderkemp's  earliest  Labors 
among  the  Caffres. — King  William's  Town. — Agreeable  Intercourse  with 
Mr.  Brownlee  and  Jan  Tzatzoe. — Visit  to  Peelton. — Effects  of  the  La- 
bors and  Influence  of  Mr.  Birt. — Journey  to  Graham's  Town. — State  of 
the  People. — Port  Elizabeth. — Visits  to  Uitenhage  and  Bethelsdorp. — 
Hospitality  of  the  People  at  Hankey. — Their  Recollections  of  the  Past. — 
Return  to  Cape  Town. — Review  of  the  Events  and  Objects  of  our  Jour- 
ney.— Reflections  on  the  State  and  Prospects  of  the  Colored  Population 
of  the  Colony. — Return  to  England. 

Ox  the  20th  of  March  we  left  Orange  Grove,  crossed  the 
Great  Fish  Eiver,  ascended  a  long  and  rather  difficult  hill, 
and  then  entered  a  vast  plain  dotted  over  with  large  conical- 
shaped  ant-hills,  and  here  and  there  a  few  mimosas.  Caffre 
and  Fingoe  herdsmen  were  tending  the  flocks  which  grazed 
upon  the  plain.  Traveling  over  a  slightly  undulated  tract 
of  country,  often  park-like  in  the  singular  clustering  trees 
and  rich  tall  grass  that  covered  its  surface,  and  bordered  by 
ranges  or  groups  of  wooded  mountains,  we  passed  within  a 
short  distance  of  the  Water  Kloof,  the  scene  of  one  of  the 
most  sanguinary  conflicts  which  took  place  between  the 
British  troops  and  the  natives  during  the  late  war.  On  the 
morning  of  the  22d  we  reached  the  military  post  at  Blink- 
water,  and  were  welcomed  by  Mr.  Van  Royer,  the  missionary 
who  resides  in  that  part  of  the  place  called  Tidmanton. 

The  chapel  in  this  place  had  been  used  by  the  military  as 
a  commissariat  store ;  but  a  temporary  building,  for  the 


CHAP.  ix.  BEACON  HILL.  257 

purpose  of  public  religious  worship  and  instruction,  had 
been  erected  by  the  people,  who  were  again  gathering  to 
the  settlement  after  the  dispersion  and  devastation  of  the 
war.  The  people  were  living  in  temporary  huts.  Several 
of  them  had  hung  their  crops  of  maize  on  the  branches  of 
trees,  or  on  frames  of  wood,  adjacent  to  their  dwellings. 
We  walked  through  their  grounds,  crossed  the  Kat  Eiver, 
and  proceeded  some  distance  through  inclosures  of  maize 
and  Caffre  corn,  up  to  a  high  mountain  hi  the  neighborhood 
called  Beacon  Hill.  The  day  was  clear,  and,  on  reaching 
the  summit,  we  enjoyed  an  extensive  view  of  the  country 
around,  comprising  mountain,  wood,  valley,  plain,  and  wind- 
ing stream,  altogether  a  beautiful  and  fertile  country.  This 
was  formerly  the  residence  of  Gaika,  more  recently  of  Ma- 
como,  his  son.  A  portion  of  it  was  occupied  by  a  number 
of  Fingoes ;  but,  still  more  recently,  a  great  part  of  it  has 
been  given  away  in  farms  of  1500  acres  or  more  to  colonial 
farmers. 

I  found,  during  the  walk,  many  new  bulbs ;  and  saw,  on 
the  banks  of  the  Kat  Eiver,  some  gigantic  euphorbias,  so 
numerous  as  to  constitute  the  chief  objects  along  the  steep 
and  woody  borders  of  the  stream.  Some  of  them  were 
thirty  or  forty  feet  high,  and  two  feet  thick  at  the  base. 
Near  a  place  called  Gaika's  Kraal,  I  could  not  refrain  from 
remaining  behind  to  sketch  one  or  two  of  these  singular 
trees,  as  well  as  to  dig  up  bulbs,  and  gather  seeds  of  a  beau- 
tiful passion-flower  and  species  of  creeper  bearing  a  bright 
orange  flower,  apparently  Cephalandra  quinqueldba.  In  sev- 
eral places  the  bright  scarlet  flowers  of  the  Tecoma  capensis 
added  greatly  to  the  richness  of  the  woody  scenery  of  the 
neighborhood. 

As  a  drawback  to  the  pleasure  derived  from  these  beauti- 
ful objects,  we  passed  on  the  same  route  the  body  of  a  large 
dead  puff-adder,  a  venomous  snake  very  numerous  here. 
Mr.  Van  Eoyer  requested  us  to  keep  on  the  windward  side 

K 


258  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  ix. 

of  it,  as  it  was  supposed  that  the  effluvium  from  it  was  in- 
jurious. He  also  told  us  that,  a  day  or  two  before,  he  or- 
dered three  snakes  of  the  same  kind,  that  had  been  killed, 
to  be  buried  lest  the  children  should  tread  on  their  bones, 
adding  that  the  wounds  thus  caused  were  difficult  to  heal. 

In  the  evening  we  attended  a  meeting  of  the  people  in 
their  chapel,  which  was  well  filled.  George  Pit,  an  English 
soldier,  interpreted  what  was  said  into  Dutch,  and  William 
Kaye,  an  intelligent  Caffre,  gave  the  substance  of  the  ad- 
dress in  his  native  tongue.  The  former,  with  whom  we 
had  a  good  deal  of  conversation,  had  identified  himself  with 
the  people,  and  appeared  to  be  a  religious  man.  He  had 
suffered  the  loss  of  one  of  his  limbs  in  the  late  war.  This 
was  the  first  time  I  had  heard  the  Caffre  language  spoken 
by  a  native,  and,  though  some  of  the  sounds  were  novel 
and  not  pleasing,  the  language,  as  spoken,  was  certainly  soft 
and  euphonious  in  an  unusual  degree. 

We  had  much  conversation  with  the  people  afterward 
regarding  their  temporal  circumstances,  and  could  only  rec- 
ommend them  to  seek  from  the  proper  source  the  redress 
of  the  grievances  of  which  they  complained.  They  had 
suffered  greatly  from  the  war  and  from  other  causes,  espe- 
pecially  from  locusts,  and  from  the  fatal  disease  among  their 
horses  and  cattle,  so  that  they  had  not  a  single  horse  left, 
and  only  nine  head  of  cattle,  including  cows.  Under  such 
circumstances  some  of  the  families  found  it  difficult  to  get 
bread. 

Early  the  next  morning  we  again  met  the  people  in  the 
chapel,  and  endeavored  to  address  to  them  some  words  of 
encouragement.  After  taking  breakfast  with  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Van  Eoyer,  who  are  both  people  of  color  and  highly  es- 
teemed by  the  authorities,  as  well  as  others,  we  commenced 
our  journey.  After  we  had  left  the  village  we  observed  a 
number  of  women  standing  in  front  of  a  cluster  of  acacia 
bushes  by  the  road-side,  and,  as  we  drew  near,  they  began 


CHAP.  ix.  PHILIPTON.— SNAKES.  259 

to  sing  one  of  their  hymns  with  their  peculiarly  soft,  melo- 
dious voices.  The  sound  at  a  short  distance  produced  an 
exceedingly  pleasing  effect,  and  by  the  time  we  reached  the 
place  where  they  were  standing  they  had  commenced  sing- 
ing in  our  language  the  English  hymn  of  which  the  con- 
cluding stanza  is — 

"  There  we  shall  meet  to  part  no  more. 
O,  that  will  be  joyful,"  etc. 

When  they  ceased  we  alighted,  shook  hands  with  them,  and 
parted,  not  without  emotion,  which  some  were  unable  to 
conceal.  They  silently  returned  to  the  village,  and  we 
pursued  our  way  through  the  same  beautiful  and  fertile 
country. 

The  low  hills  and  hollows  were  here  covered  with  wood. 
The  grass  by  the  sides  of  the  road  was  in  some  parts  two 
feet  high,  the  soil  rich  loam,  occasionally  many  feet  deep. 
On  our  route  we  passed  the  Mancazana  Mountain  and  stream, 
Fort  Armstrong,  taken  by  the  Caffres,  the  lofty  Chumie 
Mountains,  and  the  still  more  lofty  "  Luheri  High,"  or  Gai- 
ka's  Hill,  used  as  a  beacon  for  Caffreland  during  the  late 
war.  Some  parts  of  the  road  were  difficult,  and  just  as  we 
had  passed  the  Buxton  Eiver,  the  sides  of  which  were  steep, 
I  got  out  to  walk,  and,  when  a  few  yards  in  advance  of  our 
oxen,  saw  a  large  snake  in  the  middle  of  the  road,  which 
our  men  soon  killed.  It  was  a  puff-adder,  thick,  and  about 
two  feet  long,  and  said  to  be  very  venomous. 

About  dusk  we  reached  Philipton,  where  we  were  gladly 
welcomed  by  the  daughters  of  the  late  Mr.  Eead,  for  whom 
the  people  had  erected  a  small  and  comfortable  dwelling, 
every  building  in  the  place  having  been  destroyed  during 
the  war.  "While  at  tea  the  conversation  turned  upon  snakes, 
and  our  friends  told  us  they  were  very  numerous ;  that 
recently  the  wife  of  one  of  the  people,  awaking  in  the  night, 
felt  something  on  her  arm,  which  she  took  hold  of,  thinking 
it  was  the  infant  who  slept  in  the  same  bed,  but  found  it 


260  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  ix. 

was  a  large  snake  which,  had  crept  between  her  and  the 
child.  It  bit  her  thumb,  but  the  bite  did  not  prove  poison- 
ous. They  also  confirmed  the  opinion  that  the  bones  of 
certain  snakes  are  poisonous,  stating  that,  during  the  late 
war,  a  Fingoe  when  on  parole  trod  on  the  bones  of  a  ser- 
pent, and  was  pierced  in  the  foot.  His  foot  swelled,  then 
his  leg,  and  afterward  his  whole  body,  and  he  died  in  two 
months.  In  this  case  the  wound  might  have  been  inflicted 
by  a  living  snake,  but  the  general  opinion  is  as  above 
stated. 

In  a  country  abounding,  as  Africa  does,  with  serpents,  I 
expected  to  hear  many  anecdotes  respecting  them ;  and  con- 
versing on  one  occasion  with  Mr.  Pullen,  a  farmer  who  has 
lived  many  years  in  the  country,  and  seemed  to  have  paid 
rather  more  than  usual  attention  to  this  species  of  reptile, 
he  said  he  once  saw  a  mouse  running  in  a  field,  and  that, 
coming  in  sight  of  a  snake,  though  at  a  considerable  dis- 
tance, it  instantly  stopped.  The  snake  fixed  its  eye  on  the 
mouse,  which  then  crept  slowly  toward  the  snake,  and,  as 
it  approached  nearer,  trembled  and  shrieked  most  piteously, 
but  still  kept  approaching  until  quite  close,  when  it  seemed 
to  become  prostrate,  and  the  s'nake  then  devoured  it.  On 
another  occasion  he  had  watched  a  snake  capture  a  mouse 
in  the  same  manner ;  but,  as  it  was  retreating,  he  followed, 
and  struck  it  on  the  back  with  a  stick,  when  it  opened  its 
mouth,  and  the  mouse  escaping  ran  for  some  distance,  then 
fell  down,  but  after  a  minute  recovered  and  ran  away.  An- 
other time  he  said  he  watched  a  snake  in  the  water  which 
had  fixed  its  eye  upon  a  frog  sitting  among  the  grass  on  the 
bank.  The  frog,  though  greatly  alarmed,  seemed  unable  to 
stir,  until  Mr.  Pullen  gradually  pushed  a  rush  growing  near 
so  that  it  intervened  between  the  eye  of  the  snake  and  its 
intended  victim,  when  the  frog,  as  if  suddenly  liberated, 
darted  away.  Mr.  Pullen's  ideas  were  in  accordance  with 
the  popular  notion  that  the  snake  has  the  power  of  exer- 


CHAP.  ix.  VISIT  OF  THE  GOVERNOR.  2GI 

cising  some  mesmeric  or  other  influence  through  the  steady 
fixing  of  its  eye,  and  that  whatever  intercepts  this  gaze 
breaks  as  it  were  the  charm,  and  sets  the  prisoner  free. 

Numbers  of  the  people  from  the  adjacent  posts  came  to 
see  us  during  the  forenoon  of  the  next  day.  Among  them, 
and  accompanied  by  a  female  attendant,  «ame  Botha's  wife, 
a  quiet,  respectable,  grief-stricken  woman,  apparently  about 
forty  years  of  age.  After  sitting  in  silence  some  time,  she 
said  she  came  to  ask  if  we  could  give  her  any  tidings  of 
Botha.  He  had  been  implicated  in  the  war,  and  was  at  that 
time  suffering  his  sentence  in  the  colony.  She  said  she  had 
written  several  times  by  post,  but  had  received  no  reply. 
She  was  told  it  was  believed  he  was  well,  and  conducting 
himself  with  propriety,  but  that  probably  he  had  not  the 
means  of  writing  to  her.  She  has  a  son  and  two  daughters, 
but  no  means  of  support,  all  Botha's  land  being  declared 
forfeited.  We  were  informed  that  she  is  highly  respected 
by  the  people,  who  sympathize  with  her  and  allow  her  to 
cultivate  portions  of  their  land  for  subsistence. 

Among  others  who  came  was  the  schoolmistress  of  Bux- 
ton,  an  intelligent  and  respectable  woman,  who  deplored 
the  dispersion  of  her  school,  and  expressed  her  hopes  that 
the  land  on  which  the  school  stood,  and  which  had  been 
seized,  would  be  restored,  the  building  repaired,  and  the 
children  again  collected  for  instruction.  The  seizure  has 
since  been  declared  unlawful,  and  it  is  hoped  the  school  will 
be  reopened.  A  few  weeks  before  our  arrival  the  governor 
had  been  at  the  settlement :  he  visited  the  church  and  school, 
and  called  upon  the  daughters  of  the  late  missionary ;  he  has 
encouraged  them  to  persevere  with  the  school,  and  expressed 
himself  to  Mr.  Green,  one  of  the  officers  of  the  church,  as 
pleased  with  what  he  saw  of  the  efforts  of  the  people  to  re- 
pair the  devastations  of  the  war.  Sir  George  Grey  also,  du- 
ring his  visit,  listened  with  interest  and  kind  feeling  to  the 
complaints  which  some  of  the  people  respectfully  preferred, 


262  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  ix. 

promising  that  inquiry  should  be  made  and  wrongs  redressed. 
His  visit  seems  to  have  left  favorable  impressions  on  the 
missionaries  and  people  at  every  place,  soothing  many  an 
anxious  spirit,  and  inspiring  hopes  of  consideration  and  jus- 
tice as  honorable  to  himself  as  it  has  proved  reassuring  and 
cheering  to  the  people. 

Mr.  James  Bead,  the  missionary,  was  absent,  being  then  at 
the  Paarl ;  but  we  spent  the  day  with  Mr.  Green  and  the 
chief  men  of  the  place,  conversing  on  the  circumstances  of 
the  people  and  the  prospects  of  the  mission,  and  in  the 
evening  attended  a  religious  service  in  the  church. 

Next  morning  by  daybreak  I  was  awakened  by  the  sing- 
ing of  the  people,  who  at  this  early  hour  commenced  their 
Sabbath  services.  In  the  forenoon  about  five  hundred  per- 
sons assembled  in  the  church,  all  decently  clothed  in  Euro- 
pean attire,  which  was  the  more  striking  when  considered 
in  connection  with  the  recent  calamities  of  the  war  and  their 
present  deep  poverty.  A  small  congregation  of  Fingoes 
met  for  worship  in  the  old  school-room  in  the  afternoon, 
and  there  was  a  second  large  assembly  in  the  church  in  the 
evening.  On  these  occasions,  however  imperfect  the  knowl- 
edge of  the  people  might  be,  and  however  uncertain  the 
source  of  their  emotions  as  compared  with  those  of  the  mem- 
bers of  more  refined  and  educated  communities,  it  was  not 
easy  to  witness  scenes  such  as  we  then  contemplated  without 
being  convinced  that  to  these  earnest  people  religion  was 
something  more  than  a  form ;  that  the  simple  truths  of  the 
New  Testament,  as  they  had  been  taught  to  understand 
them,  supplied  a  want  which  they  deeply  felt,  smoothed  the 
ruggedness  of  their  path  in  the  present  life,  and  inspired 
the  hope  of  a  happier  future. 

On  the  following  morning  we  bade  adieu  to  the  children 
in  the  school,  upward  of  eighty  in  number,  and  encouraged 
their  indefatigable  teacher  to  persevere,  in  the  hope  of  peace 
and  of  better  days  to  come.  "We  also  took  leave  of  the 


CHAP.  ix.  KAT  EIVER.  2G3 

people,  many  of  whom  were  assembled  in  the  church.  The 
whole  company  walked  with  us  through  the  settlement. 
When  we  reached  the  brow  of  a  hill  by  the  high-road,  the 
women  and  girls  who  were  standing  on  both  sides  of  the 
road  began  to  sing  one  of  their  hymns  referring  to  a  future 
meeting  in  another  world.  Before  they  had  finished  many 
an  eye  was  suffused  with  tears,  and  it  may  well  be  supposed 
that  I  was  not  unaffected  by  the  scene. 

From  the  rising  ground  on  which  I  stood  I  looked  over 
the  fertile  and  undulated  valley,  guarded  on  two  sides  by 
the  lofty  summits  of  the  Winterberg  and  the  Katberg,  at 
the  base  of  which  the  Kat  Eiver,  bordered  with  flowers, 
rippled  and  dashed  along,  falling  over  rocks  and  winding 
with  several  bends  through  the  settlement,  watering  in  its 
course  the  fields  and  gardens  of  the  people,  now  either  brown 
with  the  stalks  of  the  gathered  grain  or  covered  with  corn 
nearly  ripe.  Here  and  there  two  or  three  goats  browsed 
among  the  bushes,  or  stood  perched  upon  the  crumbling 
rocks,  while  the  few  cattle  which  war  and  disease  had  left 
grazed  among  the  thick  tall  grass  in  the  uninclosed  parts 
of  the  settlement,  tended  by  a  Hottentot  or  Caffre  boy  and 
his  dog.  In  the.  centre  of  this  scene  stood  the  bare  walls  of 
the  large  old  church,  with  a  smaller  and  more  recent  erection 
by  its  side,  and  a  little  farther  off  the  roofless  houses  of  the 
missionaries.  A  large  black  bird  like  a  raven  was  perched 
on  the  gable  end  of  one  of  the  bare  walls ;  weeds  and  flow- 
ers were  growing  within  the  vacant  rooms ;  the  blackened 
trunks  of  trees  left  standing,  and  the  vigorous  shoots  spring- 
ing from  the  stumps  of  those  which  had  been  felled,  revealed 
the  devastation  that  had  been  made  in  the  orchards  and 
gardens  around.  Besides  these  the  ruins  of  former  habita- 
tions of  the  people  appeared  on  every  hand,  and  near  them 
the  low  beehive-shaped  huts  which  formed  their  present 
shelter  and  their  homes.  Around  us,  in  the  midst  of  this 
diversified  scene,  were  gathered  the  greater  part  of  the  peo- 


264  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  ix. 

pie,  their  hearts  overflowing  with  gladness  on  finding  that, 
after  all  they  had  suffered,  there  were  yet  those  who  could 
sympathize  in  their  sorrows,  and  feel  and  speak  kindly  to 
them.  Again  and  again,  after  the  general  leave-taking,  one 
and  another  came  to  say  how  grateful  to  them  our  visit  had 
been,  inspiring  hope  for  the  future,  and  bringing  back  to  their 
recollections  the  pleasures  of  by-gone  days,  when  friendly 
visits  were  frequent ;  and  when  I  looked  around  and  turned 
from  the  landscape  to  the  people,  and  saw  their  deep  emo- 
tion, and  listened  to  their  parting  words,  I  felt  that  I  could 
not  envy  the  feelings  of  any  one  who  could  have  gazed 
unmoved  on  such  a  scene. 

Soon  after  we  had  left  the  good  people  at  Philipton  rain 
began  to  fall,  and  continued  during  the  day ;  but  though 
the  road  was  slippery  and  traveling  difficult  we  arrived 
soon  after  dark  at  the  ford  of  the  Chumie  Eiver,  the  banks 
of  which  were  so  steep  and  slippery  that  our  driver  wished 
to  halt  until  daybreak;  but  by  means  of  ropes  we  managed 
to  keep  our  wagon  upright,  and  soon  after  crossing  reached 
Macfarlane,  where  we  were  welcomed  by  Mr.  M'Dermid  of 
the  Scotch  mission,  and  felt  grateful  for  the  shelter  of  his 
friendly  roof  during  the  storm  and  the  rain  of  the  night. 

The  next  day  our  driver,  who  had  been  engaged  with 
the  colonial  forces  and  had  been  wounded  ia  the  late  war, 
pointed  out  many  scenes  of  carnage  lying  in  our  route. 

Continuing  our  way  over  this  lately-disputed  ground,  and 
having  Alice  or  Fort  Hare  on  our  right,  and  Fort  Cox  at 
the  foot  of  the  Amatola  Mountains  on  our  left,  we  reached 
Knapp's  Hope,  which  is  pleasantly  situated  on  a  grassy 
slope  running  down  to  the  Keiskamma  Eiver.  Here  we 
remained  with  Mr.  Kayser  and  his  family  until  the  follow- 
ing day,  much  gratified  with  the  encouraging  circumstances 
under  which,  assisted  efficiently  by  his  son  Frederick,  he 
had  resumed  his  labors  among  the  Caffres.  A  considerable 
number  had  gathered  around  him,  and  the  circular  huts 


CHAP,  ix,  SCHOOL.— DARK  NIGHT.  2G5 

clustered  together  on  the  upper  side  of  the  slope  formed 
quite  a  Caffre  village.  About  two  hundred  acres  of  land 
were  irrigated  and  under  culture,  and  from  some  parts  of 
this  maize  and  Caffre  com  had  already  been  gathered,  while 
in  others  the  crops  were  still  standing.  Another  portion 
of  land  of  equal  extent  admitted  of  culture  so  soon  as  the 
people  should  be  able  to  lead  out  the  water  of  the  river. 
We  held  in  the  evening  a  deeply-interesting  meeting  with 
the  chiefs  and  principal  men  of  two  Fingoe  villages,  one  of 
them  twenty  miles  distant,  who  had  come  to  ask  for  a  mis- 
sionary. 

Early  the  next  morning  we  attended  a  religious  service 
of  the  people,  and  after  breakfast  visited  the  school,  in  which, 
out  of  eighty-two  scholars  on  the  books,  seventy-two  were 
present.  The  first  class  read,  with  considerable  ease,  a  chap- 
ter from  the  English  Testament.  They  also  recited  portions 
of  the  Scriptures,  and  answered  questions  in  arithmetic  in 
English  with  readiness  and  accuracy.  We  then  spent  some 
time  in  conversation  with  the  Fingoe  chiefs  and  people,  and 
in  the  afternoon  resumed  our  journey.  Our  kind  friends 
furnished  us  with  a  team  of  oxen  to  relieve  our  own,  and 
to  expedite  our  way  to  the  next  station ;  but  soon  after  we 
had  passed  Fort  White  the  night  became  so  dark  that  our 
guide  declared  he  could  not  see  his  way,  and  the  road  was 
so  bad  in  consequence  of  the  number  of  deep  circular  holes 
that  we  were  obliged  to  halt  until  daybreak  in  the  midst  of 
a  damp,  boggy  flat,  tying  our  oxen  to  the  wheels  of  our 
wagon  to  prevent  their  being  lost. 

Starting  at  daybreak  we  reached,  in  two  or  three  hours, 
Pirie,  a  Scottish  missionary  station ;  but  as  Mr.  Eoss,  the 
missionary,  had  gone  from  home  that  morning,  we  contin- 
ued our  journey,  though  not  without  regarding  with  pecul- 
iar interest,  among  many  surrounding  objects,  the  garden 
and  the  trees,  one  of  which  was  planted  by  Vanderkemp. 
Our  driver  pointed  out  to  us  the  spot  where  the  son  of  Mr. 


266  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  is. 

Brownlee,  the  missionary  of  King  William's  Town,  was 
killed  by  the  CafFres  in  the  commencement  of  the  late  war, 
and  he  added  that  he  was  himself  one  of  the  soldiers  who 
carried  his  body  home.  Much  of  the  space  over  which  we 
traveled  this  day  is  to  missionaries  a  sort  of  classic  ground. 
Before  reaching  Pirie  we  passed  over  the  spot  where  Dr. 
Vanderkemp,  half  a  century  ago,  built  his  grass-roofed  mis- 
sionary hut,  kneeling  down  when  he  had  cut  the  first  bun- 
dle of  grass  to  thank  God  for  a  home  in  the  wilderness.  A 
little  farther  along  the  Debe  we  crossed  a  couple  of  streams 
at  a  spot  where  the  same  pioneer  of  missionaries  to  Caffre- 
land  had  dwelt  for  some  time. 

The  same  afternoon  we  reached  King  William's  Town,  a 
place  of  some  importance,  and  the  chief  military  post  on  the 
frontier,  pleasantly  situated  on  the  banks  of  the  Buffalo  Kiv- 
er.  Most  of  the  houses  appeared  to  be  recent  erections ;  a 
few  in  the  military  quarter  were  shaded  by  trees  and  sur- 
rounded by  gardens,  the  spots  formerly  cultivated  by  Mr. 
Brownlee  and  Jan  Tzatzoe.  On  reaching  the  house  of  the 
former,  which  is  situated  near  the  Caffre  village,  in  the 
outskirts  of  the  town,  we  were  cordially  welcomed  by  Mr. 
Brownlee,  a  "tall,  plain,  Scottish  man,"  as  Pringle  calls 
him,  venerable  from  years,  virtues,  and  wrongs.  He  led  us 
into  his  neat,  comfortable  house,  and  introduced  us  to  his 
family.  After  traversing  the  desert,  it  was  quite  refreshing 
to  see  on  the  table  of  the  room  in  which  we  sat  a  vase  of 
newly-gathered  flowers,  comprising  roses,  balsams,  petunias, 
and  verbenas,  with  others  of  native  growth. 

In  the  evening  I  walked  with  Mr.  Brownlee  through  his 
garden,  where  I  was  agreeably  surprised  to  find,  besides 
peaches,  figs,  apricots,  and  grapes,  a  number  of  our  choicest 
sorts  of  plums,  pears,  and  apples.  The  former  do  not  thrive 
well ;  but,  among  the  latter,  New  Town  Pippin,  Eibstone 
Pippin,  Lemon  Pippin,  and  others,  were  doing  well.  Along 
his  veranda  TCas  trained  a  -large  fragrant  white  ipomsea 


CHAP.  ix.  EFFECTS  OF  MR.  BIRT'S  LABORS.  267 

from  Natal.  Leaving  the  garden,  we  walked  over  tlie  ad- 
jacent country  along  the  course  by  which  he  had  brought 
water  from  a  distance  of  two  miles  to  the  town.  Mr. 
Brownlee  is  quite  a  botanist,  and  it  was  a  great  treat  to 
walk  with  him  among  the  varied  vegetation  of  Caffreland. 
The  most  beautiful  plant  we  saw  was  a  dwarf  species  of 
erythrina,  crowded  with  rich  scarlet  blossoms.  Besides  this 
there  were  some  splendid  specimens  of  leonotis,  with  scar- 
let-tinted orange  flowers. 

The  next  day  we  were  joined  by  Mr.  Birt  from  Peelton, 
and  met  the  people  to  deliberate  upon  the  state  of  the  mis- 
sion. Jan  Tzatzoe,  whom  I  had  known  in  England,  was 
present,  and  dined  with  us  afterward.  The  next  morning 
I  accompanied  Mr.  Brownlee  three  or  four  miles  up  the  Buf- 
falo Kiver,  and,  entering  the  bush,  cut  a  piece  from  the 
branch  of  a  tree  covered  with  orchids,  which  I  ultimately 
succeeded  in  bringing  home  safely.  On  returning  we  pro- 
ceeded over  a  rich  grassy  country  to  Peelton,  about  nine 
miles  distant,  where  I  met  with  a  hospitable  reception  from 
Mr.  Birt 

This  important  station  was  entirely  destroyed  during  the 
late  war ;  but,  since  the  missionary  and  the  people  who  re- 
tired to  Fort  Beaufort  have  returned,  a  good  building  has 
been  erected,  which  at  present  serves  the  double  purpose  of 
chapel  and  school.  The  mission  family  have  a  neat,  com- 
fortable house,  and  the  natives  have  erected  a  number  of 
temporary  dwellings.  This  station  is  one  of  the  most  im- 
portant in  the  country,  situated  on  the  border  of  Caffreland 
and  the  royal  reserves,  and  a  considerable  population  have 
already  gathered  around.  In  the  evening  I  walked  out 
with  Mr.  Birt  along  the  course  of  the  river,  passing  a  num- 
ber of  plantations,  in  some  of  which  the  people  were  at 
work.  The  land  seemed  to  be  exceedingly  good,  and  capa- 
ble of  greatly  extended  cultivation. 

The  Sabbath  which  I  spent  at  this  station  was  a  day  of 


2G8  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  ix. 

much  interest.  The  Sunday-school  was  thronged,  and  many 
of  the  children  read  the  English  Scriptures  remarkably  well. 
The  place  of  worship  was  so  small  that  only  adults  could 
be  admitted ;  all  the  young  people,  therefore,  were  obliged 
to  remain  away.  About  two  hundred  communicants  par- 
took of  the  ordinance  of  the  Lord's  Supper  with  great  pro- 
priety and  seriousness  of  demeanor.  Throughout  the  day 
I  was  struck  with  the  earnestness  and  gravity  which  char- 
acterized the  Caffres  in  their  language  and  behavior.  Their 
singing  was  remarkably  correct,  their  voices  good,  and  they 
avoided  an  error  which  I  had  observed  elsewhere — that  of 
being  much  too  loud. 

The  next  day  the  missionaries  stationed  among  the  Caf- 
fres held  at  Peelton  their  quarterly  meeting,  and  we  were 
glad  to  be  present  to  confer  with  them  unitedly  on  the  prog- 
ress of  their  important  work.  The  communications  made 
by  the  missionaries  present  respecting  the  spiritual  state  of 
their  people  were  far  more  satisfactory  and  encouraging 
than  could  have  been  expected,  considering  how  recent  was 
the  termination  of  the  war  and  how  disastrous  its  effects. 
They  were  all  likewise  much  encouraged  by  the  favorable 
manner  in  which  the  governor,  on  his  late  visit  to  the  Caffre 
frontier,  had  noticed  their  labors,  assuring  them  of  his  satis- 
faction, and  of  his  assistance,  as  far  as  practicable,  in  pro- 
moting on  a  religious  basis  what  he  regarded  as  of  the  ut- 
most importance — the  education,  industry,  and  general  civ- 
ilization of  the  people. 

On  the  following  day,  the  3d  of  April,  we  visited  the 
schools,  and  were  exceedingly  gratified  with  the  extent  to 
which  English  was  taught,  and  with  the  general  proficiency 
of  the  scholars.  "We  then  held  a  meeting  with  the  people, 
and  afterward  visited  some  of  the  Christian  families  at  their 
own  habitations.  In  the  course  of  the  afternoon,  after  tak- 
ing leave  of  our  hospitable  friends,  we  returned  to  King 
"William's  Town ;  and  here  bidding  farewell  to  Mrs.  Brown- 


CHAP.  ix.  GRAHAM'S  TOWN.  269 

lee  and  her  family,  we  crossed  the  Buffalo  Kiver,  and  com- 
menced our  homeward  course. 

Should  peace  remain  unbroken,  and  the  enlightened  pol- 
icy of  the  governor,  its  surest  guarantee,  be  continued,  there 
would  seem  to  be  a  happier  future  in  prospect  for  the  Caffre 
nation.  If  they  have  the  means  of  sound  practical  educa- 
tion, comprising  a  knowledge  of  the  useful  arts,  together 
with  faithful  religious  teaching,  there  is  no  sufficient  reason 
to  doubt  the  advancement  of  this  interesting  people  in  all 
that  belongs  to  the  well-being  of  men  in  the  present  life  and 
their  hopes  of  that  which  is  to  come. 

On  the  4th  we  crossed  the  Keiskamma  at  Line  Drift. 
The  bottom  of  the  stream  was  rocky  and  the  waters  turbid, 
but  we  crossed  in  safety,  though  the  governor's  party,  in 
crossing  at  the  same  place  a  few  weeks  before,  lost  one  of 
their  wagons  and  a  team  of  mules,  all  being  swept  down  the 
stream.  Continuing  our  way,  we  passed  Fort  Peddie,  and 
crossed  the  Fish  Kiver  at  Trumpeter's  Drift,  where  another 
of  the  governor's  wagons  had  been  carried  down  the  stream, 
and  the  mules  only  saved  by  being  cut  loose  and  swimming 
to  the  shore.  The  wagon  was  lying  among  the  bushes  at 
some  distance  down  the  river  at  the  time  we  passed.  The 
owner  of  an  accommodation  house  on  the  bank  of  the  river 
told  us  that  accidents  were  frequent  with  the  natives,  who 
remained  in  the  wagons  shouting  to  the  oxen,  but  that  white 
men  generally  had  persons  in  the  stream  to  keep  the  oxen 
up.  Pursuing  our  journey,  and  passing  the  night,  which 
was  wet  and  cold,  on  the  high  ground  beyond  Driver's  Hill, 
we  reached  Graham's  Town  in  the  forenoon  of  the  6th  of 
April.  This  young  African  city  is  pleasantly  situated  in 
the  midst  of  an  amphitheatre  of  grassy  mountains.  The 
streets  are  wide  and  regularly  laid  out;  the  houses  neat, 
generally  white  or  yellow,  and  numbers  of  them  shaded 
with  trees;  the  Episcopalian,  Methodist,  and  Independent 
churches  and  chapels  being  conspicuous  among  the  build- 


270  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  ix. 

ings  of  the  place.  The  population  of  Graham's  Town  was 
stated  to  be  12,000,  of  which  one  third  are  colored,  viz.,  the 
Hottentots,  Caffres,  and  Fingoes. 

Here  we  remained  four  days  the  guests  of  Mr.  Smith,  the 
excellent  missionary  of  the  station,  a  man  apparently  well 
qualified  for  his  somewhat  difficult  position,  combining  with 
a  gentle  spirit,  modest,  unobtrusive  demeanor,  and  good 
judgment,  unimpeachable  integrity  and  great  moral  courage. 
During  our  stay  we  visited  the  Hottentot  location,  which 
still  presents  affecting  memorials  of  the  sufferings  of  the 
people ;  but,  notwithstanding  all,  they  did  not  seem  to  have 
lost  heart.  Large  congregations  assembled  in  their  sub- 
stantial stone  chapel,  which  they  have  recently  enlarged, 
listening  intelligently  to  sermons  in  the  English  language. 
The  public  meetings  we  held  were  satisfactory,  and  the  ac- 
count given  us  by  the  missionary  of  the  state  of  religion 
among  them  was  encouraging.  Grateful  for  the -kindness 
experienced  here  from  Mr.  Thompson,  minister  of  the  Inde- 
pendent chapel,  and  from  a  number  of  Christian  friends,  we 
proceeded  onward  to  Port  Elizabeth,  where  I  was  glad  to 
find  accommodation  under  the  same  roof  with  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Eobson,  the  latter  of  whom,  formerly  Mrs.  Williams,  I  had 
known  in  England  many  years  before. 

At  this  rising,  prosperous,  and  important  town,  the  port 
of  the  eastern  provinces  of  the  colony,  we  remained  nearly 
a  fortnight,  grateful  for  the  hospitality  we  received  from  Mr. 
Harsent  and  his  family,  as  well  as  other  Mends,  and  en- 
couraged by  witnessing  the  beneficial  effects  of  missionary 
labors  among  people  of  color,  both  Hottentots  and  Fingoes. 
During  this  period  I  spent  a  Sunday  and  part  of  two  days 
with  Mr.  Paterson  at  the  pleasantly-situated  and  well- wa- 
tered village  of  Uitenhage,  and  was  thus  made  acquainted 
with  the  many  grounds  of  encouragement  which  cheer  the 
missionary  in  his  labors  among  the  colonial  people  of  color 
and  the  Fingoes.  At  Bethelsdorp,  where  Mr.  Merrington, 


CHAP.  ix.  HANKEY.— DR.  PHILIP.  271 

notwithstanding  the  discouragements  of  the  locality,  still 
continues  his  indefatigable  labors,  we  met  the  missionaries 
of  the  district  at  their  periodical  gathering,  and  were  glad 
thus  to  confer  with  them  unitedly  on  the  affairs  of  their 
several  stations. 

At  Port  Elizabeth  we  disposed  of  our  wagon  and  oxen, 
trusting  for  the  remainder  of  the  journey  to  the  kindness 
of  friends  and  to  hired  conveyances,  chiefly  the  rough  and 
rapidly -traveling  mail-carts.  On  the  24th  of  April  we  left 
Algoa  Bay,,  and  in  the  evening  of  the  following  day  arrived 
at  Hankey,  on  the  Gamtoos  River,  having  traveled  in  a  wag- 
on which  Mr.  Durant  Philip  had  kindly  sent  for  us.  Here 
and  at  the  adjacent  branch  station  of  Kruis  Fontayn  we  re- 
mained a  week,  and,  among  other  objects  of  interest,  visited 
the  tunnel  which  with  great  labor  has  been  cut  through  the 
mountain  for  the  purpose  of  conveying  the  water  of  the 
river  over  a  large  tract  of  fertile  and  valuable  land. 

In  a  secluded  spot  in  the  mission  garden,  and  under  the 
shade  of  a  large  weeping- willow,  repose  the  mortal  remains 
of  Dr.  Philip,  also  those  of  his  estimable  wife,  his  oldest 

son,  and  other  branches  of  his  family.     I  felt  a  mournful 
......  * 

satisfaction  in  visiting  the  spot,  believing,  as  I  do,  that  high 

as  is  the  estimation  in  which  his  memory  is  held  by  many, 
coming  generations  in  South  Africa  will  value  him  even 
more  highly,  and  will  class  him  among  their  sincerest  friends, 
and  ascribe  to  him  an  honorable  position  among  the  earli- 
est advocates  of  civil  and  religious  liberty  in  that  country. 
Before  we  left,  the  people  of  Hankey,  and  those  of  Kruis 
Fontayn,  invited  us  to  a  public  tea -meeting  at  their  re- 
spective stations,  a  sort  of  African  soiree,  which  was  con- 
ducted with  great  propriety  and  much  good  feeling  at  both 
places.  The  meeting  at  Hankey  was  held  in  the  only  large 
building  in  the  place,  which  at  present  serves  the  double 
purpose  of  church  and  school.  More  than  200  persons  were 
present,  occupying  seats  on  both  sides  of  the  building,  while 


272  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  ix. 

a  line  of  tables,  covered  with  crockery  and  dishes  of  cakes 
of  different  kinds,  was  extended  along  the  centre.  Mr. 
Philip  presided,  a  number  of  females  had  charge  of  the  ta- 
bles, and  the  tea  and  cakes  were  carried  on  trays  to  the 
company  with  readiness  and  order.  The  social  entertain- 
ment was  at  intervals  enlivened  with  singing  by  the  natives, 
both  in  English  and  Dutch.  Mr.  Philip  has  paid  much  at- 
tention to  this  important  part  of  his  people's  education,  and 
must  feel  amply  rewarded  in  witnessing  the  proficiency  of 
many  of  his  pupils.  One  young  African  mother,  with  a 
child  in  her  arms,  seemed  to  possess  an  unusually  mellow 
voice.  Sometimes  a  select  few  sang  a  favorite  piece,  and  at 
other  times  a  larger  number  joined.  There  was  no  need  for 
repeated  solicitations  before  commencing,  and  there  were  no 
plaudits  at  the  close ;  but  to  both  singers  and  listeners  it 
seemed  to  afford  a  high  degree  of  enjoyment. 

Speeches  were  delivered  in  the  intervals  between  the 
singing,  and  the  addresses  of  some  of  the  men  were  exceed- 
ingly striking.  There  was  no  previously  arranged  pro- 
gramme of  subjects  to  be  discussed,  but  each  one  spoke 
from  the  promptings  of  his  own  feelings.  On  this  account 
it  was  curious  to  note  the  different  tenor  of  the  remarks  as 
indicating  the  tone  and  current  of  their  thoughts.  Little 
reference  was  made  to  the  future.  Hope  did  not  seem  to 
have  presented  unsubstantial  pictures  to  their  fancy ;  but 
memory  was  busy  with  the  past,  which  was  brought  back 
in  deeply  affecting  contrast  with  the  present.  One  man  of 
considerable  property  and  fair  reputation,  who,  I  think, 
pays  for  his  son's  education  at  the  seminary,  said,  when  al- 
luding to  the  domestic  comforts  of  his  family,  "  I  was  torn 
when  an  infant  from  my  mother's  breast,  sold  to  a  dealer, 
who  carried  me  away,  and  I  never  saw  my  mother  again. 
She  was  a  slave,  and  I  was  born  a  slave,  and,  as  such,  sold 
by  my  own  father."  Another,  in  the  course  of  his  remarks, 
said,  "  I  was  only  so  high,"  holding  up  his  stick,  "  when  I 


CHAP.  ix.  HUMANSDORP.  273 

was  placed  upon  the  end  of  a  barrel,  and  the  auctioneer 
made  me  swing  my  arms  about  and  turn  myself  round 
while  the  people  bid  for  me."  Another  said,  "Instead  of 
a  place  of  light  and  cheerfulness  like  this,  I  remember  when 
I  have  sought  the  darkest  dell  or  the  craggiest  rock,  and 
when  the  chafing  of  the  rushes  or  the  falling  of  a  withered 
bough  has  made  my  heart  beat  and  my  whole  frame  trem- 
ble." These,  with  some  truly  tragic  scenes,  were  the  kinds 
of  pictures  which  memory  presented,  and  which  they  con- 
trasted with  the  present  as  incentives  to'  gratitude  and  stim- 
ulants to  effort,  so  as  to  insure  still  greater  benefits  than 
those  already  enjoyed.  Their  frequent  allusion  to  their 
children  as  ignorant  of  what  their  fathers  had  suffered,  and 
therefore  in  danger  of  undervaluing  the  religious  teaching 
of  the  missionaries,  with  other  means  of  improvement,  ap- 
peared to  me  exceedingly  appropriate.  The  engagements 
at  both  places  closed  with  prayer,  and  I  retired  gratified 
with  the  occasion  thus  afforded  of  witnessing  and  sharing 
the  social  enjoyments  of  the  people. 

On  the  3d  of  May  we  proceeded  to  Humansdorp,  nine 
miles  from  Kruis  Fontayn,  and  then  continued  our  jour- 
ney to  Avontuur  in  Long  Kloof,  where  we  spent  the  Sab- 
bath pleasantly  with  Mr.  Hood  and  his  family,  endeavoring 
to.  encourage  the  people,  who,  after  many  years'  residence 
there,  were  obliged,  at  great  inconvenience  and  loss,  to  seek 
another  position.  They  had  purchased  land  at  some  dis- 
tance, and  the  missionary  was  preparing  to  accompany  them 
to  their  future  home. 

Leaving  Avontuur  and  descending  the  Montague  pass, 
we  revisited  Pecaltsdorg,  and  held  a  more  satisfactory  meet- 
ing with  the  people.  We  also  visited  Zuurbraak,  where  the 
people  prepared  a  public  breakfast,  which  was  followed  by 
an  encouraging  public  meeting.  I  had  sketched  a  number 
of  natural  objects  during  my  journey,  and  on  our  way  to 
this  station  I  added  a  drawing  of  a  beautiful  Aloe  ferox  in 

S 


274 


VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR. 


ZAJIIA   CAFFBA. 


ALOB  VULGABI8. 

(Medicinal  aloe.) 


ALOE  FEROX. 


flower.  I  had  previously  sketched  the  Aloe  vulgaris,  which 
abounds  near  Bethelsdorp.  The  gum  of  this  plant,  the  me- 
dicinal aloe  of  commerce,  is  gathered  by  the  natives  of  Beth- 
elsdorp, and  sold  to  the  traders.  I  had  also  sketched  a  za- 
mia-tree,  growing  near  the  Gamtoos  Eiver.  Leaving  Zuur- 
braak  I  proceeded,  in  company  with  Messrs.  Helm  and  An- 
derson, to  Swellendam,  where,  after  a  short  rest  under  the 
hospitable  roof  of  Dr.  Eobertson,  I  was  able,  notwithstand- 
ing some  indisposition,  to  continue  the  journey  with  my 
friends  to  Cape  Town,  which  place  we  reached  in  safety  on 
the  19th  of  May,  thankful  for  preservation  throughout  our 
wanderings  and  for  the  many  blessings  by  which  the  jour- 
ney had  been  attended. 

Among  the  many  impressions  which  the  journey  now 
closed  has  left  upon  my  mind,  few  are  more  agreeable  than 


CHAP.  ix.  STATE  OF  THE  MISSIONS.  275 

those  produced  by  the  hospitality  which  we  almost  invari- 
ably experienced.  With  the  families  of  the  missionaries  at 
the  various  stations  I  naturally  felt  at  home ;  but  at  other 
places,  especially  among  the  Dutch  boers,  or  farmers,  we 
were  perfect  strangers,  and,  excepting  in  one  or  two  in- 
stances, when  the  companionship  of  a  missionary  from  the 
neighborhood  indicated  in  some  degree  the  object  of  our 
journey,  we  appeared  as  ordinary  travelers ;  yet  we  were  al- 
ways received  courteously  and  kindly  helped  on  our  way. 
Our  journey  was  in  furtherance  of  a  religious  object,  and 
our  intercourse  chiefly  with  the  colored  people.  The  Lon- 
don Missionary  Society,  by  which  I  had  been  requested  to 
undertake  this  journey,  had  been  for  many  years  engaged 
in  endeavors  to  effect  the  conversion  of  the  heathen  races  in 
the  country  by  educating  them  and  teaching  them  in  the 
simplest  manner  the  truths  of  the  Christian  religion.  These 
endeavors  had  not  been  in  vain.  In  the  several  places  oc- 
cupied by  the  missionaries  numbers  of  the  colored  people 
were  now  united  in  organized  Christian  communities,  hav- 
ing respectively  their  churches  or  chapels,  schools,  and  oth- 
er means  of  religious  and  social  improvement.  The  efforts 
directed  to  the  accomplishment  of  these  ends  had  been  sus- 
tained by  the  society  at  home  for  more  than  half  a  century. 
The  great  and  important  political  changes  which  had  taken 
place  in  the  colony  during  that  period  had  placed  the  col- 
ored people  on  a  footing  of  civil  equality  with  other  classes, 
and  had  secured  to  them  the  fruits  of  their  enterprise,  in- 
dustry, and  skill,  and  thus  placed  within  their  reach  the 
means  of  sustaining  the  ordinances  of  religion  among  them- 
selves, and  leaving  the  society  in  England  free  to  extend 
the  knowledge  of  the  Gospel  to  other  nations.  Something 
had  been  done  by  the  African  Christians  toward  this  latter 
object,  as  they  had  for  some  years  contributed  toward  the 
funds  of  the  society  in  England ;  but  their  own  pastors,  and 
in  some  instances  the  schoolmasters,  were  still  supported, 


276  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  DC. 

not  by  the  churches  themselves,  though  some  of  these  had 
been  organized  forty  years,  but  by  the  distant  society  in  En- 
gland. It  had  been  for  some  time  felt  that  a  step  still  far- 
ther in  advance  might  be  made  with  advantage  to  the  peo- 
ple themselves,  inducing  greater  self-reliance  and  imparting 
stability  to  the  Christian  institutions  among  them,  by  their 
undertaking  the  recognized  duty  of  sustaining  the  means 
of  their  own  spiritual  improvement,  yet  retaining  intimate 
Christian  and  fraternal  relationship  with  the  churches  in 
England,  and  receiving  such  supplementary  aid  as  their 
circumstances  might  for  a  season  still  render  necessary.  To 
inquire  as  to  the  practicability  of  this  change,  and  to  confer 
with  the  missionary  pastors  and  their  respective  flocks  on 
the  best  mode  of  effecting  it,  were  the  chief  objects  of  the 
visit  I  had  now  made ;  and  it  had  afforded  me  much  pleas- 
ure to  observe  the  principle  that  it  was  the  duty  of  every 
Christian  community  to  maintain  the  ordinances  of  religion 
among  its  own  members,  and  then  to  extend  the  knowledge 
of  the  Gospel  to  others,  readily  acknowledged,  and  to  re- 
ceive the  most  frank  and  cordial  assurance  of  sincere  co- 
operation on  the  part  of  the  missionary  pastors  and  their 
people  in  carrying  out  these  views — assurances  which  have 
since  been  most  honorably  and  generously  acted  upon. 

The  conversion  of  the  natives  to  Christianity,  though  the 
primary  and  paramount  object  of  the  missionary,  had  una- 
voidably involved  attention  to  many  secular  matters  con- 
nected with  their  temporal  affairs  and  social  progress,  and 
the  more  prominent  indications  of  their  present  state  in  these 
respects  could  scarcely  fail  to  attract  observation.  I  am  fully 
aware  that  the  brief  period  of  little  more  than  five  months, 
during  which  I  remained  in  the  country,  and  the  compara- 
tively hurried  visits  which  I  made  to  the  several  stations, 
could  but  ill  qualify  me  for  forming  very  strong  or  definite 
opinions  on  the  actual  condition  of  the  people.  Yet  there 
were  several  points  connected  with  these  which  repeatedly 


CHAP.  ix.  STATE  OF  THE  MISSIONS.  277 

forced  themselves  on  my  notice.  Prominent  and  most  im- 
portant among  them  was  a  general  and  earnest  solicitude  on 
the  subject  of  personal  religion.  The  missionaries  at  most 
of  the  stations  testified  that,  notwithstanding  the  ungodli- 
ness existing  among  many  portions  of  the  colored  people 
who  made  no  profession  of  religion,  and  the  defections  of 
those  who  did,  there  appeared  to  be  at  the  present  time  a 
growing  and  more  than  ordinary  desire  after  religious  in- 
struction, and  an  increasing  sense  of  its  value  and  its  ne- 
cessity. This  feeling,  it  was  stated,  was  not  confined  to  the 
colored  people,  but  prevailed  in  some  cases  among  the  white 
inhabitants ;  and  not  the  least  pleasing  feature  in  many  of 
the  public  services  which  we  attended  was  the  presence  of 
a  number  of  white  persons,  resident  in  the  neighborhood. 
These  were  sometimes  sitting  in  the  same  seat  with  the  na- 
tives, or  in  pews  standing  side  by  side,  and  often  intermin- 
gled with  those  occupied  by  persons  of  color.  Should  this 
state  of  feeling  continue,  it  may  be  justly  regarded  as  one 
of  the  surest  foundations  of  both  temporal  and  spiritual  ad- 
vancement. 

Contrasted  with  this  ground  of  encouragement,  were 
sources  of  apprehension  arising  from  the  limited  amount 
and  the  imperfect  quality  of  the  education  obtained  by  them. 
This  appeared  traceable  in  some  places  to  the  inadequate 
means  of  instruction  within  their  reach,  in  others  to  the  ina- 
bility of  the  parents  to  send  their  children  to  school,  or  to 
their  insensibility  to  its  advantages.  In  connection  with 
this  subject,  parental  discipline,  the  enlightened  and  judi- 
cious authority  of  the  parent  over  the  child,  seemed  to  be 
but  seldom  exercised. 

Another  source  of  apprehension  arises  from  the  fact  that 
the  young  people  growing  up  without  personal  experience 
of  the  miseries  of  slavery,  and  consequently  without  the 
stimulus  to  self-improvement  which  the  remembrance  sup- 
plied to  their  parents,  are  in  danger  of  deeming  the  restraints 


278  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  ix. 

of  school  irksome  and  unnecessary.  The  Hottentots  par- 
ticularly, from  the  natural  weakness  of  character  which, 
notwithstanding  many  truly  amiable  traits,  they  exhibit, 
seem  to  prefer  an  easy,  listless  mode  of  life  to  the  self-denial, 
energy,  forethought,  and  enterprise  which  the  maintenance 
of  their  present  position  will  require,  to  say  nothing  of  their 
progressive  advancement.  Persons  of  this  class  appear  too 
often  contented  if  their  physical  wants  are  supplied,  or  the 
means  of  immediate  gratification,  however  expensive  to 
them,  secured,  and  consequently  live  as  if  but  for  the  day, 
trusting  to  the  future  to  provide  for  itself.  There  were 
some  striking  exceptions  to  these  characteristics.  But  still, 
with  regard  to  the  Hottentots  especially,  the  existence  of 
this  downward  tendency  can  not  be  regarded  with  indiffer- 
ence ;  for,  without  a  change,  they  must  either  become  mere 
hewers  of  wood  and  drawers  of  water  to  others,  or,  as  a  race, 
gradually  melt  away.  It  is  this  weakness  of  character  which 
makes  persons  of  this  class,  when  destitute  of  religious  prin- 
ciple, fall  so  easily  into  the  temptations  which  the  canteens 
or  other  sources  of  drunkenness  and  poverty  present. 

Next  to  the  benefits  of  religious  instruction,  the  friends  of 
the  colored  people  appear  to  be  especially  required,  in  the 
present  state  of  society,  to  aid  and  guide  them  in  seeking 
for  themselves  progressive  improvement ;  to  make  them  dis- 
satisfied with  a  low  position  in  the  social  scale,  and  to  awaken 
yearnings  and  stimulate  efforts  after  something  better ;  to 
impress  upon  them  the  absolute  necessity  of  education  at 
any  cost,  with  more  of  self-reliance,  and  the  conviction  that 
the  future  depends  not  upon  others  but  upon  themselves. 

But  while  causes  of  anxiety  like  these  were  not  wanting, 
there  were  other  subjects  of  consideration  peculiarly  cheer- 
ing. Many  of  the  colored  people,  formerly  slaves,  have  won 
their  way  to  competence,  if  not  to  wealth,  to  social  comfort, 
and  to  positions  of  influence  in  society,  being  held  in  just 
and  general  esteem  by  all  classes  of  the  community.  Ee- 


CHAP.  ix.          GOOD-FEELING  BETWEEN  CLASSES  279 

ligion  had  taught  them  frugality  and  temperance.  When 
they  became  their  own  masters,  industry  and  skill  brought 
their  appropriate  reward,  while  their  strength  of  character 
and  consistency  of  conduct  secured  them  respect  and  enti- 
tled them  to  be  numbered,  not  only  among  the  best  friends 
of  their  race,  but  the  most  valuable  members  of  the  com- 
munity— examples  of  what,  it  is  to  be  hoped,  will  one  day 
form  a  numerous  portion  of  the  people,  viz.,  a  hardy,  active, 
intelligent,  and  upright  middle  class.  This,  with  God's 
blessing  may  be  their  future,  if  they  are  wisely  counseled, 
and  are  true  to  themselves. 

Nor  must  I  omit  to  mention  that  I  found  there  existed 
among  the  colonists  more  consideration  and  kindness  to- 
ward the  colored  people  altogether,  with  a  more  natural  and 
healthy  state  of  feeling,  than  had  at  all  times  existed.  The 
present  laws,  the  recent  Constitution  which  had  given  so 
many  of  the  colored  people  the  elective  franchise,  the  en- 
lightened views  expressed  by  some  of  the  leading  men  in 
the  colony,  the  good  conduct  of  many  of  the  native  Africans, 
and  the  enlightened  and  judicious  measures  of  the  governor, 
may  have  unitedly  contributed  to  this.  But  to  whatever 
cause  it  is  to  be  ascribed,  it  is  alike  honorable  to  the  white 
man  and  beneficial  to  the  colored,  and  it  will  be  regarded 
by  the  best  friends  of  the  country  as  an  earnest  of  the  time 
when  equity,  and  good  faith,  and  right  feeling  shall  charac- 
terize the  intercourse  of  the  several  classes  with  each  other, 
and  constitute  them  one  united,  loyal,  and  prosperous  com- 
munity. 

Having  remained  at  Cape  Town  two  or  three  weeks  after 
the  termination  of  my  journey,  I  embarked  on  board  the 
steam-ship  Pacific  from  Australia  on  the  14th  of  June; 
and,  after  touching  at  St.  Helena,  St.  Vincent,  and  Madeira, 
reached  England  on  the  18th  of  July,  1855,  grateful  to  the 
Almighty  Disposer  of  all  things  for  the  health  and  the  mer- 
ciful protection  I  had  experienced  throughout  my  wander- 
ings. 


280  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  x. 


CHAPTER  X. 

Overland  Route  to  Pointe  de  Galle. — Detention  in  Ceylon. — Voyage  to 
Mauritius. — Arrival  in  Madagascar. — Signs  of  increasing  Traffic  at  Tama- 
tave. — First  Night  on  shore. — General  Fondness  of  the  People  for  Music. 
— Introduction  of  the  Violin. — Dinner  with  the  Governor. — Deaths  of 
former  Friends. — Applications  for  Medicine. — Presents  from  the  Princes. 
— Visit  from  the  Governor  and  Suite. — Astonishment  excited  by  the  Elec- 
tric Telegraph. — The  Queen's  Preference  for  running  Messengers  rather 
than  the  Wires. — Native  Work  in  Iron. — Iron-smelting. — Native  Smiths. 
— Message  of  Condolence  from  the  Queen  to  a  bereaved  Family  at  Tama- 
tave. — Mode  of  estimating  the  Worth  of  the  deceased. — Homage  to  the 
dead. — Scenes  of  Riot  and  Drunkenness. — The  Governor's  Dinner  to  the 
Officers  from  the  Capital. — Bearers  engaged  for  the  Journey. — The  Gov- 
ernment Seamstresses. 

BEFORE  leaving  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  in  1855, 1  had 
received  a  letter  from  the  Malagasy  government,  conveying 
to  Mr.  Cameron  and  myself  permission  to  proceed  to  the 
capital ;  and  before  the  close  of  the  year  a  second  letter  to 
the  same  effect  reached  me  in  London.  Mr.  Cameron,  then 
residing  at  the  Cape,  had  expressed  his  willingness  to  ac- 
company me ;  and  as  the  permission,  forwarded  in  this  in- 
stance without  solicitation  on  our  part,  might  be  regarded 
almost  as  an  invitation,  I  did  not  feel  it  right  to  refuse  to 
undertake  another  visit  to  the  country. 

For  this  purpose,  I  embarked  in  one  of  the  Peninsula 
and  Oriental  Company's  steamers  at  Southampton,  on  the 
20th  of  March,  1856.  We  touched  at  Gibraltar  and  Malta, 
landed  at  Alexandria,  and  pursued  the  now  often-traversed 
overland  route  to  Suez.  Here  we  embarked  again  on  board 
the  Nubia,  sailed  down  the  Bed  Sea  to  Aden,  and  then, 
crossing  the  Indian  Ocean  to  Ceylon,  landed  at  Pointe  de 


CHAP.  x.  KETURN  TO  TAMATAVE.  281 

Galle,  on  tlie  21st  of  April,  thirty-two  days  from  South- 
ampton. 

A  severe  hurricane  had  disabled  the  vessel  sent  from 
Mauritius  for  the  mails  from  England  and  India,  in  conse- 
quence of  which  we  were  detained  nearly  five  weeks  in 
Ceylon.  This  afforded  me  an  opportunity  of  observing,  to 
a  limited  extent,  the  varied  scenery  and  luxuriant  vege- 
tation of  that  beautiful  island ;  of  visiting  some  of  the 
shrines  of  idolatry,  and  the  scenes  of  missionary  labor ;  as 
well  as  of  receiving  the  hospitality  and  kindness  of  mission- 
ary friends  in  this  part  of  the  island.  Deeply  as  I  regretted 
at  the  time  this  detention  at  Ceylon,  I  could  not  but  feel 
grateful  when  I  afterward  learned  that  by  the  delay  thus 
occasioned  I  had  avoided  the  perils  of  the  sea,  as  well  as 
the  ravages  of  the  cholera,  which  had  again  visited  Mauri- 
tius almost  immediately  before  my  arrival. 

On  the  24th  of  May  I  left  Colombo  on  board  the  Star 
of  the  East,  and  reached  Mauritius  on  the  17th  of  June. 
Here  I  experienced  a  repetition  of  the  generous  hospitality 
which  had  been  shown  during  my  former  visits ;  and  though 
disappointed  at  finding  that  engagements  at  the  Cape  pre* 
vented  Mr.  Cameron  from  joining  me,  I  prepared  without 
delay  for  departing  alone  for  Madagascar.  The  assistance 
of  friends  was  cheerfully  afforded  in  the  needful  prepara- 
tions for  the  voyage.  Messrs.  1'Estrange  and  Co.  generously 
gave  me  a  passage  in  the  Castro,  one  of  the  best  vessels 
in  the  trade,  and  on  the  9th  of  July  I  embarked  in  the  same 
vessel  in  which  I  had  returned  from  Madagascar  in  1854. 

Three  days  of  pleasant  sailing  brought  us  in  sight  of  the 
coast,  and  by  noon  on  the  following  day  we  anchored  off 
Tamatave,  where  the  officers  of  the  port  and  other  natives, 
as  well  as  the  European  residents,  expressed  their  pleasure 
at  my  arrival. 

The  next  morning,  when  I  went  on  shore  to  inquire  after 
a  dwelling,  I  was  met  at  the  custom-house  by  one  of  the 


» 
282  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  x. 

officers  of  the  port,  who  led  me  to  a  large  newly-built  house, 
situated  within  an  inclosure  in  the  centre  of  the  village ; 
and,  having  shown  me  the  three  several  rooms,  the  floors 
of  which  were  boarded,  and  the  walls  covered  with  matting, 
he  informed  me  that  it  was  at  my  service  so  long  as  I  might 
require  it.  On  my  asking  the  terms,  he  said  no  payment 
was  required;  but,  at  the  same  time,  intimated  that  he 
wished  to  have  the  refusal  of  an  officer's  cocked  hat  which 
he  understood  the  captain  of  the  ship  had  for  sale. 

In  walking  through  the  village  I  was  struck  with  the 
change  which  the  opening  of  the  trade  after  our  visit  in 
1853  had  produced.  The  native  population  appeared  to 
have  been  greatly  increased ;  a  number  of  houses  for  for- 
eign traders  had  been  built,  and  others  were  in  course 
of  erection ;  among  them,  and  not  far  from  the  landing- 
place,  a  hotel  or  boarding-house,  the  first  ever  erected  in 
Madagascar.  Considerable  quantities  of  rice  appeared  to 
be  collected  for  exportation.  Cargoes  of  horned  cattle  were 
said  to  be  easily  obtained,  and  upward  of  4000  head  of  cat- 
tle had,  since  the  opening  of  the  trade,  been  annually  ex- 
ported to  Mauritius  alone.  The  trade  of  the  port  was  not 
at  that  time  considered  to  be  active  and  flourishing.  There 
had  been  but  few  native  dealers  from  the  capital,  and  ru- 
mors were  afloat  among  the  people  of  an  armed  expedition, 
from  France  and  England  combined,  against  Madagascar, 
which  had  produced  an  effect  unfavorable  to  the  commerce 
of  the  island. 

As  soon  as  my  packages  were  landed  and  passed  through 
the  custom-house,  I  took  up  my  residence-  on  shore.  The 
first  night  in  my  new  habitation  contrasted  strangely  with 
the  solitude  and  stillness  of  the  nights  I  had  passed  on  the 
sea.  Night  seemed  to  be  the  holiday  season  of  the  slaves 
of  both  sexes,  whose  voices,  with  those  of  other  classes  of  the 
community,  were  heard  in  every  direction,  mingled  with  the 
beating  of  tomtoms,  or  native  drums,  and  a  rude  sort  of 


CHAT.  x.  NATIVE  MUSICIANS  AND  MUSIC.  283 

singing,  with  but  little  intermission,  from  soon  after  sunset 
until  midnight,  especially  at  the  low  houses  at  which  native 
arrack  was  sold.  Besides  this,  a  house  on  the  outside  of 
the  fence  inclosing  that  in  which  I  resided  seemed  to  be  the 
abode  of  a  company  of  musicians,  who  with  drums,  fifes, 
tambourines,  clarionets,  and  triangles,  or  exchanging  these 
for  two  or  three  violins,  gathered  within  and  around  their 
dwelling  a  considerable  crowd  throughout  the  early  part  of 
night.  By  daybreak  in  the  morning  the  drums  or  violins 
of  my  neighbors  were  also  in  frequent  requisition ;  and  few 
were  the  hours  of  the  day  excepting  those  of  extreme  heat 
during  which  their  music  was  not  heard.  A  number  of 
strangers  who  came  to  my  house  on  the  following  day  earn- 
estly inquired  whether  I  had  any  violins  for  sale,  and  this 
instrument  appeared  to  have  become  quite  popular  among 
certain  classes  of  the  people  since  my  visits  in  1853  and  1854. 
On  the  second  day  after  my  arrival  I  accompanied  a  chief 
to  the  residence  of  one  of  the  officers  of  the  port.  On  en- 
tering his  house,  the  walls  and  floor  of  which  were  neatly 
covered  with  mats,  we  found  him  sitting  in  an  .arm-chair, 
his  spear  and  round  wooden  shield  covered  with  bullock's 
hide  hanging  on  the  wall  behind  him.  Two  or  three  chiefs 
were  standing  on  one  side  of  him,  and  his  wife,  and  her  sis- 
ter, and  a  female  assistant  sitting  on  the  other ;  and  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  room  half  a  dozen  Malagasy  musicians, 
some*  in  native  costume,  others  in  shirts  and  trowsers,  all 
sitting  on  the  floor,  one  thrumming  the  native  valiha,  and 
the  rest  scraping  the  violin  with  great  earnestness,  beating 
time  all  the  while  with  their  heels  on  the  floor.  They  ceased 
soon  after  we  had  entered ;  but  while  we  were  talking  an 
officer  from  the  governor  approached,  and  as  soon  as  he  was 
announced  the  natives  commenced  their  music,  which  they 
continued  until  after  he  was  seated ;  and  when  he  rose  to 
depart  they  began  again,  and  continued  as  long  as  it  was 
supposed  he  could  hear.  This,  I  was  informed,  was  in  com- 
pliment to  the  visitor. 


284  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  x. 

Many  of  my  former  friends  came  to  visit  me  in  the  course 
of  the  day ;  and,  among  other  indications  of  welcome,  I  re- 
ceived a  note  from  the  governor,  inviting  me  to  a  dinner  to 
be  given  on  the  same  day  to  a  foreigner  about  to  proceed  to 
the  capital.  I  was  but  ill  prepared  to  appear  at  a  public 
dinner,  and  should  have  preferred  being  omitted  in  the 
number  of  guests  at  this  festive  gathering ;  but,  as  the  gov- 
ernor seldom  invited  the  foreigners  at  the  port  to  meet  him, 
and  I  might  have  been  considered  wanting  in  respect  to  the 
authorities  of  the  place  had  I  declined,  particularly  as  the 
invitation  came  from  two  sources  and  was  intended  as  a 
mark  of  respect,  I  gratefully  accepted  it  as  such. 

The  two  officers  sent  to  conduct  me  to  the  place  walked 
on  each  side  of  me,  one  having  a  spear  in  his  hand,  the 
other  a  naked  sword.  On  arriving  at  the  house  of  the  chief 
judge,  where  the  company  were  assembled,  the  governor 
and  other  chief  officers  gave  me  a  very  cordial  welcome. 
Having  placed  me  next  to  himself  at  dinner,  the  governor, 
who  had  been  long  a  pupil  of  the  missionaries  and  speaks 
English  tolerably  well,  conversed  in  the  most  friendly  man- 
ner during  the  evening,  and,  when  he  proposed  my  health, 
wished  me  a  pleasant  journey  to  the  capital.  I  was  some- 
what surprised  to  find  my  friend  the  harbor-master  in  the 
company,  and  to  see  him  whom  I  had  visited  and  left  ill 
in  bed  in  the  morning  dancing  with  a  Frenchman  in  the 
evening. 

It  would  have  been  deemed  disrespectful  for  any  one  to 
depart  before  the  health  of  the  queen  had  been  drunk  by 
the  company ;  but  as  soon  as  this  had  been  done  I  took  my 
leave  of  the  governor  and  his  companions,  and  reached  my 
residence  about  nine  o'clock.  Here  I  found  many  of  my 
former  friends,  some  of  whom  had  come  from  a  distance ; 
and  with  them  I  remained  in  deeply -interesting  conversa- 
tion until  a  late  hour.  From  them  I  now  learned  that  the 
circumstances  of  my  friends  in  general  were  favorable ;  that 


CHAP.  x.     VISITS  OF  WELCOME  FROM  THE  NATIVES.         285 

some  from  the  interior  whom  on  my  former  visit  I  had  left 
prostrate  with  the  fever  had  recovered ;  while  four  other 
valued  Christian  friends,  some  of  whom  had  slept  in  my 
house  in  order  to  be  with  me  during  the  last  night  I  had 
passed  on  the  shore,  and  who  had  accompanied  me  to  the 
canoe  that  was  waiting  at  the  water's  edge  on  the  bright, 
beautiful  moonlight  morning  in  which  I  had  sailed  from 
Madagascar  in  1844,  had  been  cut  off  by  fever.  They  were 
all  in  the  prime  of  life ;  two  of  them  men  of  great  promise ; 
one  a  remarkably  inquiring,  intelligent,  and  amiable  young 
man,  an  aid-de-camp  of  the  prince,  and  about  twenty -four 
years  of  age ;  the  other,  whom  I  used  to  call  "  my  tall  friend," 
the  son-in-law  of  the  governor  of  an  adjacent  province,  a 
sort  of  agent  of  the  prince,  and  to  me  a  most  attached  and 
consistent  Christian  friend.  He  had  died  of  fever  in  his 
thirty-third  year,  leaving  a  widow  and  family  at  the  capital. 

On  the  morning  after  my  visit  to  the  governor  I  rose  soon 
after  daybreak,  but  almost  before  I  was  dressed  friends  came 
with  tokens  of  their  good- will — among  them  a  chief  and  his 
wife,  followed  by  a  little  slave  girl,  bringing,  along  with  oth- 
er presents,  a  bottle  of  sweet  new  milk ;  and,  as  they  learn- 
ed that  this  was  peculiarly  acceptable,  they  continued  to 
send  it  every  morning  so  long  as  I  remained  at  Tamatave. 

I  had  missed  from  the  governor's  table  an  officer  who, 
during  my  former  visits,  had  always  been  present  on  such 
occasions,  and  whom  I  used  to  call "  my  friend  in  the  green 
uniform,"  on  account  of  his  wearing  a  coat  of  green  velvet 
richly  embroidered  with  gold  lace,  and  a  gold  aiguillette. 
He  had  been  one  of  Radama's  officers,  and  was  reported  to 
have  been  severe,  or  even  cruel,  in  war.  He  filled  an  office 
of  some  importance  at  Tamatave,  spoke  French  with  com- 
parative ease,  and  was  often  at  my  house.  Notwithstand- 
ing the  report  of  his  severity  as  a  soldier,  I  was  always  im- 
pressed with  the  gentleness  of  his  manners  and  apparent 
amiableness  of  his  disposition,  as  well  as  with  the  strength 


286  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  x. 

of  his  social  affections.  He  had  paid  much  attention  to  the 
education  of  his  children,  to  whom  he  always  appeared 
strongly  attached.  When  he  applied  to  me  during  my  for- 
mer visit  to  take  his  likeness,  he  stipulated,  before  he  would 
allow  me  to  take  a  portrait  of  himself  singly,  that  I  should 
include  himself  and  his  children  in  the  same  picture ;  and 
he  himself  arranged  the  group  before  the  camera,  causing 
his  eldest  son,  a  fine  youth  about  seventeen  years  of  age,  to 
stand  at  his  right  hand,  then  taking  a  younger  child  on  each 
knee,  and  causing  another  to  stand  between  them.  Noth- 
ing but  the  illness  of  his  wife  at  the  time  prevented  her 
being,  as  he  had  earnestly  desired,  included  in  the  family 
picture. 

He  was  in  health  and  vigor  when  I  left,  but  had  gone 
subsequently  to  his  own  land  in  the  interior,  and  had  there 
been  seized  with  the  small-pox.  As  soon  as  this  was  known 
he  had,  according  to  the  custom  of  the  country,  been  re- 
moved from  the  habitations  of  men,  and  lodged  in  a  tempo- 
rary dwelling,  where  he  soon  died.  Some  of  the  members 
of  his  family  afterward  anxiously  inquired  if  I  had  any 
copies  of  his  likeness,  especially  the  family  group.  I  had 
only  one,  and  this  I  reserved  for  his  eldest  son,  who  was 
then  in  the  interior;  but  I  told  them  I  thought  I  had  the 
negative  at  home,  and  if  so  I  would  send  them  some  copies 
after  my  return,  a  promise  which  I  hope  to  fulfill. 

On  the  17th,  four  days  after  my  arrival,  a  native,  some- 
what past  middle  age,  came  to  my  house,  and,  addressing 
me  in  English,  said  he  was  guide  and  interpreter  for  trav- 
elers, and  had  been  sent  by  the  prince  to  conduct  Mr.  Cam- 
eron and  myself  to  the  capital.  He  afterward  told  me  that 
when  a  youth  he  had  gone  to  the  Cape  of  (rood  Hope,  where 
he  had  served  a  number  of  years  in  the  Cape  corps,  and  had 
also  been  a  servant  to  Captain  Underwood,  secretary  to  the 
late  Lord  Charles  Somerset,  the  governor ;  but  that  many 
years  ago  he  had  returned  to  his  native  country,  and  had 


CHAP.  x.     PRESENTS  FROM  PRINCES  AT  THE  CAPITAL.      287 

since,  in  the  capacity  of  guide  and  interpreter,  accompanied 
many  foreigners  from  the  coast  to  the  capital.  He  said  the 
present  was  the  best  season  for  making  the  journey,  and 
that  I  need  not  be  apprehensive  of  the  fever.  I  was  sorry 
to  find  afterward  that  habits  of  drinking  rendered  my  guide 
incapable  of  affording  us  much  assistance. 

During  the  day  I  had  many  applications  for  medicine, 
and  for  books,  dictionaries,  spelling-books,  etc. ;  and  in  the 
afternoon  four  or  five  chiefs,  arrayed  in  the  large  white 
lamba  of  the  Hovas,  came  to  my  house.  They  were  attend- 
ed by  a  number  of  dependents,  some  of  whom  led  an  ox, 
while  others  brought  turkeys  and  other  poultry,  with  bags 
of 'rice  and  other  provisions,  which^they  said  they  had  been 
directed  by  their  superiors  residing  at  the  capital  to  present 
to  Mr.  Cameron  and  myself  on  our  arrival,  but  that  as  I 
alone  had  come,  they  had  brought  them  for  my  acceptance. 
Through  the  medium  of  the  interpreter  I  thanked  them  for 
their  kindness,  and  begged  them  to  convey  to  the  princes 
at  the  capital  my  grateful  acknowledgments.  One  of  the 
chiefs  handed  me  a  letter,  which,  on  reading  it  afterward,  I 
found  to  be  from  the  prince  royal  and  his  cousin,  expressing 
the  pleasure  with  which  they  anticipated  our  arrival,  and 
informing  us  that  they  had  directed  the  present  to  be  given 
to  us  as  an  expression  of  their  regard. 

As  the  guide  intimated  that  the  ox  was  intended  as  pro- 
vision during  the  journey,  it  was,  at  his  recommendation, 
killed  the  same  evening,  and  salt  provided  for  curing  it,  but 
long  before  our  departure  it  had  all  disappeared.  Toward 
evening  two  soldiers  were  stationed  at  my  house  for  the 
avowed  purpose  of  preventing  any  of  my  packages  being 
stolen,  and  from  this  time  one  or  two  soldiers  were  always 
in  the  house. 

A  day  or  two  after  I  received  a  visit  from  the  governor, 
the  chief  judge,  and  a  number  of  other  officers.  The  gov- 
ernor wore  scarlet  embroidered  pantaloons,  a  green  coat,  a 


288  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  x. 

laced  hat,  and  was  carried  in  a  palanquin  preceded  by  a 
band  of  music,  and  attended  by  a  guard  of  eighty  or  a  hund- 
red men  bearing  muskets  or  spears.  He  said  the  wet  weath- 
er had  prevented  his  coming  earlier,  expressed  his  pleasure 
at  my  arrival,  asked  the  objects  of  my  visit,  and  inquired  if 
I  knew  of  any  hostile  intentions  in  Europe  against  Mada- 
gascar. I  informed  him  that  my  visit  was,  as  I  had  stated 
in  my  letter  sent  to  him  from  Mauritius,  a  visit  of  friend- 
ship ;  that  I  was  the  bearer  of  letters  and  presents  for  the 
queen,  and  of  a  message  of  friendship  from  the  English  gov- 
ernment, who  had  no  hostile  intentions  toward  Madagascar. 
He  expressed  his  pleasure  at  learning  that  the  English  were 
friendly  toward  Madagascar,  and  delivered  to  me  a  letter 
from  the  secretary  of  the  government  at  the  capital,  author- 
izing me  to  proceed  thither  on  my  proposed  visit  without 
delay,  and  remain  there  a  month.  He  said  he  was  anxious 
to  afford  every  facility  for  my  journey,  and  would  furnish 
bearers  to  carry  my  packages  as  soon  as  I  should  be  ready. 
During  my  previous  visits  the  chiefs  had  made  a  number 
of  inquiries,  both  of  Mr.  Cameron  and  myself,  about  the 
electric  telegraph,  the  reported  achievements  of  which,  they 
said,  were  to  them  utterly  incomprehensible.  1  already  pos- 
sessed a  general  knowledge  of  the  theory  of  telegraphic 
communication,  and  had  often  witnessed  the  working  of  the 
instrument.  After  I  had  received  the  last  application  from 
the  native  government  to  repeat  my  visit  to  Madagascar,  it 
appeared  to  me  on  reflection  that  if  I  could  show  them  the 
apparatus  and  some  of  the  simplest  modes  of  operation  by 
which  this  wonderful  application  of  modern  science  is  now 
performing  so  important  a  part  in  human  progress,  it  would 
gratify  the  more  intelligent  among  them  and  increase  the 
attractions  of  knowledge ;  while  it  would  heighten  their 
sense  of  the  amazing  resources  of  civilized  nations  and  the 
many  advantages  to  be  derived  from  upright  and  amicable 
intercourse  with  them. 


CHAP.  x.     WONDER  AT  THE  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH.  289 

With  this  object  in  view  I  had  asked  Mr.  Cook,  chairman 
of  the  International  Telegraph  Company,  with  whom  I  had 
some  previous  acquaintance,  if  it  would  be  possible  to  ac- 
quire sufficient  skill  in  manipulation  during  the  two  or 
three  months  I  might  remain  in  England  to  enable  me  to 
exhibit  the  working  of  the  telegraph  to  the  Malagasy.  He 
kindly  introduced  me  to  Mr.  Latimer  Clark,  the  engineer 
of  the  company,  who  very  readily  directed  me  to  the  most 
useful  publications  on  the  subject,  and  gave  me  access  to 
the  working  premises  of  the  company,  where  I  was  shown 
the  several  parts  of  the  machinery  and  instructed  in  the 
most  simple  methods  of  working  the  telegraph.  I  had  also 
obtained  from  the  company  the  needful  batteries,  instru- 
ments, and  two  miles  of  galvanized  wire,  which  I  had  taken 
out  with  me.  When  these  were  opened  at  the  custom-house 
and  their  use  became  known,  it  was  some  time  before  any 
other  business  could  be  attended  to,  so  anxious  were  the 
chiefs  present  to  look  at  them  and  learn  their  mode  of  oper- 
ation. 

The  governor  and  his  companions  had  heard  of  the  tele- 
graphic apparatus,  and  he  had  repeatedly  expressed  his  de- 
sire to  come  and  see  it.  He  now  asked  if'  I  could  show  it 
to  him,  and  also  the  photographic  camera;  but  as  there 
was  a  perfect  crowd  at  my  own  residence,  the  instruments 
were,  at  his  suggestion,  taken  to  the  house  of  M.  Provint,  a 
friendly  merchant  whose  kindness  and  hospitality  I  had 
uniformly  shared.  Here  the  governor  and  his  friends  ex- 
amined most  minutely  and  attentively  the  different  parts 
of  the  apparatus,  particularly  the  connecting  of  the  wires 
with  the  batteries,  the  instruments  and  the  mode  of  work- 
ing them,  and  seemed  to  be  at  a  loss  to  express  his  aston- 
ishment and  delight  when  informed  that  the  movements 
of  the  needles  which  they  saw  produced  by  working  the 
handles  of  the  instrument  signified,  according  to  their  num- 
ber and  direction,  the  letters  of  the  alphabet,  and  thus 

T 


290  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  x. 

spelled  the  words  of  the  message  that  was  sent,  and  also 
caused  the  needles  at  the  other  extremity  of  the  wire  to 
make  the  same  deflections,  signifying  the  same  letters, 
whereby  the  observer  there  could  read  the  message  as 
plainly  and  nearly  as  quickly  as  a  written  communication. 

They  seemed  to  comprehend  and  rejoice  in  the  percep- 
tion of  the  simple  mode  of  representing  letters  by  motions 
of  the  needles ;  but  what  the  power  was  which  traveled  so 
instantaneously  and  imperceptibly  along  the  wire,  moving 
the  needles  so  accurately  at  the  distant  end,  they  could 
neither  comprehend  nor  imagine.  I  could  only  tell  them 
that  it  was  a  force  or  power,  very  widely  diffused  and  per- 
forming an  important  part  in  the  operations  of  nature, 
which  was  called  electricity ;  but  what  that  electricity  real- 
ly was  the  wisest  men  among  us  did  not  know,  though  they 
were  able,  by  means  of  its  power,  to  perform  things  truly 
wonderful.  It  was  not  the  blank  unquestioning  wonder  of 
stolid  ignorance,  satisfied  that  the  facts  were  something  be- 
yond immediate  comprehension,  and  therefore  probably  su- 
pernatural, which  they  manifested,  but  the  surprise  and  in- 
tense interest  of  thinking  men  who  seemed  to  feel  that  they 
had  acquired  a  new  mental  treasure,  though  they  yet  only 
half  understood  the  wonders  before  them. 

The  mystery  of  the  telegraph  seemed  greatly  increased 
when  they  were  informed  that  the  fluid  would  ignite  gun- 
powder, and  that  a  cannon  could  be  fired  off  by  a  person 
many  miles  distant  by  means  of  a  wire  extending  from  the 
galvanic  battery  to  the  powder  in  the  touch-hole  of  the 
gun. 

On  my  arrival  subsequently  at  the  capital,  I  heard  that  a 
Frenchman  residing  there  had,  a  short  time  before,  received 
a  set  of  telegraphic  apparatus,  and,  after  exhibiting  it  on  a 
small  scale,  had  offered  to  establish  telegraphic  communica- 
tion between  Tamatave  and  the  capital,  and  then  present 
the  whole  to  the  queen ;  but  that  her  majesty  had  declined 


CHAP.  x.  PREPAKING  PACKAGES  FOB  THE  JOURNEY.  291 

the  proffered  gift,  observing  that  messengers  by  relays  of 
runners  between  the  capital  and  the  coast  were  quite  quick 
enough  for  her,  and  much  more  sure  than  the  proposed 
telegraphic  wires  would  be,  which  would  most  likely  soon 
get  out  of  order  and  become  useless. 

The  whole  apparatus  of  the  electric  telegraph  had  been 
packed  in  one  large  case,  and  other  articles  had  been  brought 
in  the  same  way.  I  had  therefore  to  open  and  repack  them 
in  smaller  boxes  for  the  convenience  of  transit,  as  all  had 
to  be  carried  on  men's  shoulders.  Happening  to  mention 
to  the  aid-de-camp  of  the  prince  that  an  article  which  I 
was  placing  in  one  of  the  boxes  was  a  present  for  the  queen, 
I  was  surprised  a  day  or  two  afterward  by  noticing  the 
same  aid-de-camp  request  a  young  officer,  who  was  sitting 
on  the  box,  to  change  his  seat  immediately,  assigning  as  a 
reason  that  the  box  contained  something  belonging  to  the 
sovereign.  He  was  instantly  obeyed,  and  the  native  serv- 
ant who  attended  me  was  charged  to  inform  every  one 
who  might  come  to  the  house  not  to  sit  on  that  box,  as  it 
was  a  great  offense  to  sit  upon,  or  even  to  sit  above,  any 
thing  intended  for  the  sovereign. 

When  the  alteration  in  my  boxes  was  finished,  a  number 
of  natives  came  and  covered  all  the  packages  with  the  long 
leaves  of  a  species  of  pandanus,  which  they  tied  on  with 
the  stalks  of  a  tough  creeper  abundant  in  the  forest.  All 
articles  are  conveyed  on  men's  shoulders  to  the  capital,  and 
are  uniformly  covered  with  these  leaves,  which  when  care- 
fully put  on  are  so  impervious  to  rain  that  not  only  piece 
goods,  but  even  sugar  or  salt,  are  carried  two  or  three 
hundred  miles  and  exposed  to  frequent  rains  without  in- 
jury. 

In  reducing  the  size  of  my  packages,  nails  and  iron  fast- 
ening for  the  corners  were  required,  and  these,  when  not 
found  in  the  market,  were  furnished  by  the  native  smiths. 
An  axe  for  cutting  fuel  and  some  large  knives  for  use  ou 


292  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  x. 

the  journey  were  also  purchased  in  the  market,  and  were 
not  only  creditable  to  the  native  workmen,  so  far  as  appear- 
ance and  finish  were  concerned,  but  wore  remarkably  well. 
Every  time  I  passed  through  the  market  I  had  noticed  the 
numerous  articles  of  iron  ware  exhibited,  and  the  reasonable 
prices  at  which  they  were  sold,  as  a  hopeful  sign  of  ad- 
vancing civilization.  Besides  weapons  of  war,  implements 
of  husbandry,  lamps,  and  other  articles  of  household  use, 
the  last  time  I  passed  through  the  market  I  was  so  struck 
with  their  several  kinds  of  tools  and  hand-saw  files  that  I 
made  a  small  purchase  for  the  sake  of  encouraging  the 
workmen. 

Iron  of  excellent  quality  abounds  in  the  central  prov- 
inces, around  the  capital,  where  it  is  found  near  the  surface, 
and  so  rich  is  the  ore  in  one  of  the  mountains,  Anibohi- 
miangavo,  that  it  is  called  the  Iron  Mountain.  The  ore  is 
so  abundant  at  the  surface  that  the  soil  has  seldom  been 
penetrated  more  than  a  few  feet  in  depth,  so  that  at  present 
no  idea  can  be  formed  of  the  riches  of  the  country  in  this 
valuable  metal.  The  natives  have  been  for  many  genera- 
tions accustomed  to  the  use  of  iron.  Their  smelting-fur- 
naces,  which  are  primitive  and  rude,  are  always  fixed  near 
a  stream,  and  the  ore  when  gathered  in  large  pieces  is 
broken  small,  and  the  earth  or  other  extraneous  substances 
removed  by  frequent  washings.  The  sides  of  the  furnaces, 
usually  sunk  two  or  three  feet  in  the  ground,  are  made  of 
stones,  covered  outside  with  clay,  a  small  quantity  of  fuel 
at  the  bottom  is  kindled,  and  the  furnace  filled  with  ore, 
either  mixed  with  charcoal  or  in  alternate  layers,  and  then 
covered  at  the  top  with  a  thick  coating  of  clay.  The  blast 
is  supplied  by  two  pairs  of  pistons  working  in  wooden  cyl- 
inders, generally  a  part  of  a  small  tree  hollowed  out.  From 
the  bottom  of  each  cylinder  a  tube  formed  by  a  bamboo  or 
an  old  gun-barrel  is  inserted  into  a  hole  through  the  stones 
round  the  furnace.  After  the  contents  of  the  furnace  have 


CHAP.  x.          SIMPLE  MODES  OF  WORKING  IKON.  295 

been  kept  some  time  at  a  white  heat  it  is  left  to  cool,  and 
when  opened  the  iron  is  found  in  pigs  or  lumps  at  the  bot- 
tom. In  this  state,  as  well  as  when  heated  again,  and  beaten 
into  bars  or  rods,  it  is  taken  to  the  government  stores,  or  to 
the  market  for  sale. 

The  early  productions  of  the  Malagasy  smiths  were  nec- 
essarily rude,  but  since  the  instruction  given  to  a  large 
number  of  youths  by  the  thoroughly-qualified  English 
smith  sent  out  with  the  missionaries,  their  work  has  been 
improved,  and  is  creditable  to  their  intelligence  and  skill, 
especially  when  the  simple  apparatus  by  which  it  is  gener- 
ally produced  is  considered.  The  smiths  who  work  for  the 
government  sometimes  form  almost  entire  villages,  and 
work  together  in  sheds,  but  the  native  smith  who  works  on 
his  own  account  plies  his  craft  at  the  southern  end  of  his 
dwelling.  His  forge  is  a  very  simple  affair.  The  earthen 
floor  of  his  house  forms  the  hearth  for  his  fire,  which  is 
kept  together  by  three  or  four  stones.  The  bellows  con- 
feist  of  two  wooden  cylinders  with  pistons,  similar  to  those 
which  supply  the  blast  to  the  smelting-furnace.  The  an- 
vil, which  is  about  six  inches  square  and  six  inches  high,  is 
let  in  to  a  thick  piece  of  wood  fixed  in  the  ground,  with  the 
water-trough,  tongs,  hammers,  and  other  tools  near  it.  The 
smith  squats  on  a  piece  of  plank  or  board  on  the  floor,  and 
his  assistants  sit  or  stand  opposite  to  him,  with  sledge-ham- 
mers in  their  hands,  ready  to  strike  when  required ;  and  by 
this  simple  process  the  articles  of  iron  in  general  use  among 
all  classes  of  the  people  are  produced. 

The  natives  understand  the  manufacture  of  candles  with 
the  fat  of  the  bullock ;  and  one  evening  during  the  time 
that  my  packages  were  being  prepared  the  prince's  repre- 
sentative came  with  a  number  of  men  bringing  about  one 
hundred  candles  of  a  good  size,  and  about  a  foot  in  length, 
which  the  people  had  prepared  for  my  use  during  the  jour- 
ney. I  thanked  them  for  their  forethought,  and  I  after- 


296  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  x. 

ward  found  the  candles  very  useful  at  the  places  where  we 
stopped  for  the  night. 

A  few  weeks  before  my  arrival  at  Tamatave  M.  Delas- 
telle,  who  had  resided  many  years  on  the  island  as  a  mer- 
chant and  planter,  had  died  from  taking  an  overdose  of 
chloroform,  which  he  had  been  in  the  habit  of  using.  To- 
ward the  close  of  the  month  three  officers  of  the  palace  ar- 
rived at  Tamatave  to  express  the  sovereign's  sympathy 
with  M.  Delastelle's  family,  and  her  sense  of  his  worth,  for 
he  had  been  associated  with  the  queen  in  attempting  to  in- 
troduce the  growth  of  the  cane  and  the  manufacture  of 
sugar,  which  had  recently  given  place  to  the  distillation  of 
arrack. 

On  Monday,  the  28th  of  July,  I  was  present  at  the  public 
meeting  of  the  parties,  which  took  place  in  the  large  room 
of  the  house  of  the  chief  judge.  The  widow  and  relatives 
of  the  deceased,  arrayed  in  plain  and  common  attire,  indi- 
cating that  it  was  the  season  of  mourning,  sat  together. 
The  officers  of  the  place  were  in  native  costume.  The 
chief  officer  wore  a  large  silk  lamba  of  splendid  pattern. 
The  second  officer  had  on  a  long  robe  of  a  bright  orange 
color,  over  which  was  a  red  scarf.  The  officers  from  the 
capital  were  in  uniforms  of  blue  cloth,  with  gold  epaulettes 
and  profusion  of  lace.  There  was  much  speaking  on  both 
sides,  but  Babangoro,  the  old  hereditary  chief  of  Tamatave, 
was  by  far  the  most  effective  orator.  I  was  struck  with 
the  novel  mode  and  apparently  graduated  scale  by  which 
the  estimated  worth  of  the  departed  was  specified  in  the 
speech  of  the  chief  of  the  embassy  from  the  capital,  who 
exclaimed  in  the  course  of  his  address,  a  sort  of  eulogium 
upon  the  departed,  "  that  the  sovereign  would  have  given 
2000  dollars— yea,  3000  dollars— yea,  5000  dollars,  rather 
than  that  he  should  have  died ;"  and  I  was  told  afterward 
that  this  was  a  customary  mode  of  expressing  their  sense 
of  the  loss  occasioned  by  the  death  of  public  persons,  and 


OHAP.  x.          HOMAGE  RENDERED  TO  THE  DEAD.  297 

that  sometimes  the  worth  of  the  deceased  was  estimated  at 
a  much  higher  figure.  It  was  also  stated,  on  this  occasion, 
that  as  a  mark  of  respect  toward  the  deceased  a  specified 
number  of  cannons  and  of  muskets  would  be  fired ;  also 
that  barrels  of  arrack  would  be  given  to  the  people,  and  a 
number  of  oxen  distributed  for  slaughter. 

During  the  forenoon  of  the  following  day  a  number  of 
officers  in  their  palanquins  preceded  by  their  band,  which 
generally  consisted  of  a  couple  of  drums,  with  clarionets, 
fifes,  and  flutes,  and  attended  by  a  guard  of  honor  of  sixty 
or  a  hundred  men,  passed  by  my  residence  on  their  way  to 
the  large  open  space  near  the  premises  of  the  late  M.  Delas- 
telle.  Two  small  cannons  tied  to  poles,  and  borne  on  men's 
shoulders,  were  also  carried  along,  followed  by  crowds  of 
people,  all  proceeding  to  the  same  place. 

About  one  o'clock  the  firing  of  cannon  and  musketry 
commenced.  The  firing,  mingled  with  the  din  of  the  music 
and  the  shouts  of  the  multitude,  was  continued  with  occa- 
sional intervals  during  the  afternoon ;  and  toward  evening, 
when  the  firing  ceased,  five  or  six  poor  frightened  oxen  were 
driven  past  my  house  toward  the  plain  at  the  north  end  of 
the  village,  where  they  were  to  be  killed  and  distributed 
among  the  parties  by  whom  they  had  been  driven  to  the 
place.  From  ten  to  twenty  intoxicated  men  surrounding 
one  of  the  terrified  animals,  some  hold  of  his  horns,  others 
of  his  tail,  occasionally  one  jumping  on  his  back,  and  sing- 
ing at  the  highest  pitch  of  their  voices,  would  pull  or  drive 
the  poor  brute  along  to  the  apparent  delight  of  their  own 
companions,  but  to  the  evident  dismay  and  terror  of  the 
more  sober  and  quiet  part  of  the  community. 

As  I  went  in  the  evening  to  the  house  of  the  hospitable 
friend  at  whose  table  I  always  found  a  place,  the  road  was 
literally  thronged  with  the  excited  and  intoxicated  multi- 
tude. Some  were  carrying  vessels  containing  intoxicating 
drink,  others  portions  of  the  slaughtered  animals,  and  more 


298  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  x. 

than  once  a  soldier  might  be  seen  among  the  crowd  with  a 
large  piece  of  flesh,  raw  and  bloody,  dangling  from  the  end 
of  the  spear  across  his  shoulder.  A  perfect  saturnalia  reign- 
ed throughout  the  village  till  past  midnight,  and  the  rude 
barbarian  music  of  the  tomtoms  scarcely  ceased  before  day- 
light. Similar  proceedings  took  place  on  the  following  day, 
although  the  officers  from  the  fort  were  not  present,  and 
few  of  the  Hovas,  or  more  respectable  portion  of  the  com- 
munity, appeared  to  participate  in  the  prevailing  drunken- 
ness and  tumult,  which  seemed  to  be  confined  in  a  great 
measure  to  the  Betsimasaraka  or  natives  of  the  coast,  and 
the  slaves. 

On  the  evening  of  the  next  day  I  was  invited  to  a  public; 
dinner  given  by  the  governor  to  the  officers  from  the  capi- 
tal. About  a  dozen  foreign  residents — Italians,  Germans, 
and  French,  but  chiefly  the  latter,  including  the  captains  of 
two  French  vessels  which  had  arrived  on  the  preceding  day 
— were  present.  The  provision  was  abundant,  consisting  of 
soup,  beef,  roast  pig,  poultry,  game,  and  pastry,  all  well  pre- 
pared. The  officers  from  the  capital  appeared  sensible  and 
well-behaved  men,  and,  as  I  sat  next  to  them  at  dinner,  1 
had  occasional  opportunities  of  answering  their  inquiries 
about  England,  as  well  as  of  hearing  the  news  from  the 
capital.  After  the  dinner,  several  of  the  foreign  residents 
expressed  their  sense  of  the  merits  and  services  of  the  late 
M.  Delastelle,  and,  as  one  of  them  frequently  mentioned  the 
name  of  the  queen,  the  governor  politely  requested  that, 
whatever  reference  they  might  make  to  M.  Delastelle,  they 
would  avoid  mentioning  the  name  of  the  sovereign ;  and,  as 
the  officers  from  the  palace  intimated  their  approval  of  the 
governor's  request,  I  inferred  that  it  was  not  considered  re- 
spectful to  the  sovereign  that  her  name  should  be  thus  in- 
troduced in  the  course  of  an  after-dinner  speech. 

On  every  occasion  that  I  had  met  him  at  dinner,  the  gov- 
ernor had  observed  that  I  did  not  drink  wine,  and  on  my 


CHAP.  x.       MALAGASY  LOYALTY  AND  ETIQUETTE.  299 

remarking  to  him  that  it  was  from  no  want  of  respect  to  my 
host,  or  to  the  parties  whose  health  was  proposed,  he  said 
he  understood  it  was  on  account  of  religious  scruples,  and 
that  he  had  been  told  that  the  Christian  law  prohibited  the 
use  of  wine.  I  was  glad  of  the  opportunity  thus  afforded 
of  correcting  his  mistake,  and  told  him  the  Bible  did  not 
prohibit  the  drinking  of  wine,  but  condemned  drunkenness, 
which  was  a  great  sin  and  a  great  calamity ;  that  although 
I  never  had  any  inclination  to  excess,  I  had  for  many  years 
discontinued  the  use  of  wine  as  an  ordinary  beverage,  and 
that  with  apparent  advantage  to  my  health.  I  added,  that 
numbers  of  people  in  my  own  country  adopted  the  same 
course,  and  that  the  drinking  of  wine  and  all  sorts  of  spirit- 
uous liquors  was,  of  late  years,  very  much  diminished  among 
the  respectable  classes  of  society. 

I  could  not  help  noticing  on  this,  as  well  as  on  a  former 
occasion,  the  apparent  ardor  of  loyalty  with  which  the  health 
of  the  prince  was  received  and  drunk  by  the  company 
standing,  immediately  before  that  of  the  queen,  which,  ac- 
cording to  Malagasy  etiquette,  is  always  the  last  toast  pro- 
posed, and  is  the  signal  for  the  departure  of  the  governor 
and  the  chief  officers.  When  this  is  proposed  the  company 
all  rise,  the  band  in  the  court-yard  plays  what  may  be  call- 
ed the  Malagasy  national  anthem,  and,  when  the  glasses  are 
emptied,  all  exclaim,  "  Long  live  the  queen !"  or  "  May  the 
sovereign  live  forever !"  About  nine  o'clock  the  governor 
and  the  officers  retired,  and  I  proceeded  to  my  own  house, 
where  I  found  a  number  of  friends  assembled,  and  had  the 
satisfaction,  of  receiving  pleasant  tidings  from  the  capital. 

The  feasting  and  dissipation  connected,  with  the  obsequies 
of  the  late  M.  Delastelle  having  terminated,  the  preparations 
for  my  journey  were  soon  completed.  The  son  of  the  gov- 
ernor of  the  adjacent  province  to  the  northward,  and  one  or 
two  other  friendly  chiefs,  had  arrived  at  Tamatave  for  the 
purpose  of  proceeding  in  company  with  me  to  the  capital, 


300  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  x. 

so  that  my  party  seemed  likely  to  be  much  larger  than  I 
had  expected. 

The  only  roads  in  Madagascar  are  those  made  by  naked 
native  feet  and  bullocks'  hoofs.  No  wheel  carriages  or 
pack-oxen  are  used  by  the  natives,  and  as  no  lakes  or  riv- 
ers admit  of  water-carriage,  except  to  a  limited  extent,  all 
goods  are  conveyed  from  one  part  of  the  country  to  another 
on  men's  shoulders.  The  governor  had  informed  me  it  was 
the  queen's  order  that  all  my  packages  should  be  carried  to 
the  capital  by  her  people,  and  a  hundred  men,  a  much  larger 
number  than  I  at  that  time  thought  needful,  were  appointed 
to  this  service.  At  my  own  request,  however,  I  engaged  a 
dozen  bearers  to  carry  my  palanquin,  cooking  -  apparatus, 
etc.,  to  whom  I  promised  payment  in  money  as  well  as  pro- 
visions by  the  way.  One  or  two  of  them  afterward  mani- 
festing some  misgivings  as  to  whether  they  might  not  be 
included  in  the  government  arrangement,  and  thereby  lose 
the  promised  payment,  they  came  to  me  to  inquire,  accom- 
panied by  the  interpreter,  whom  I  heard  telling  them,  "  En- 
glish always  pay  what  they  say.  This  one  Englishman  he 
sure  to  pay ;"  and  on  my  repeating  to  them  the  promise 
that,  whatever  any  other  person  might  give  them,  I  would 
certainly  pay  each  man  the  stipulated  sum  at  the  end  of  the 
journey,  they  appeared  delighted  at  the  prospect  of  seeing 
the  capital  and  obtaining  so  much  money. 

By  daybreak  on  the  last  day  I  was  to  spend  at  Tamatavc 
several  Betsimasaraka  chiefs  came  to  apportion  the  pack- 
ages among  the  bearers.  When  the  packages  were  suffi- 
ciently small  and  light,  two  were  given  to  one  man,  who  tied 
them  to  the  ends  of  a  thick  bamboo  cane,  to  be  carried  across 
his  shoulder.  The  larger  boxes  were  fastened  to  poles,  and 
carried  between  two  or  even  four  bearers.  In  scrambling 
and  almost  fighting  for  the  smallest  packages,  some  of  the 
men  had  seized  and  cast  on  the  ground  a  small  box  contain- 
ing a  stone  bottle  of  sulphuric  acid,  which,  when  I  saw  them, 


CHAP.  x.          THE  GOVERNMENT  SEAMSTRESSES.  301 

they  had  tied  horizontally  to  a  short  pole.  The  fluid  was  ooz- 
ing from  the  box,  which  was  already  burned  black,  and  the 
hands  of  the  men  were  affected  in  a  manner  they  could  not 
account  for.  On  opening  the  box  I  found  that  the  stone 
stopper  of  the  bottle  had  been  broken.  I  showed  them  the 
bottle,  and  told  them  it  contained  strong  water  belonging  to 
the  machine  for  sending  messages  to  a  distance,  and  that 
they  must  be  careful  and  not  throw  it  down  violently  on 
the  rocks,  or  turn  it  bottom  upward,  lest  it  should  run  out. 
The  men  who  had  burned  their  fingers  seemed  rather  un- 
willing to  have  any  thing  more  to  do  with  the  box ;  but  on 
my  screwing  in  the  stopper,  covering  it  over  with  melted 
sealing-wax,  and  then  putting  a  mark  upon  the  top  of  the 
box  that  they  might  know  the  side  which  was  to  be  always 
uppermost,  they  again  took  charge  of  it,  and  no  farther 
trouble  occurred. 

All  skilled  labor  in  Madagascar,  especially  that  which 
has  been  introduced  by  foreigners  under  the  sanction  and 
patronage  of  the  sovereign,  is  supposed  to  belong  to  the 
government ;  and  although  the  parties  are  allowed  to  exer- 
cise their  skill  for  their  own  benefit,  they  are  required  to 
hold  themselves  in  readiness  to  undertake  any  work  the 
government  may  demand.  An  unexpected  and  somewhat 
amusing  illustration  of  this  kind  of  government  service  oc- 
curred in  the  preparation  of  my  outfit.  The  governor  had 
sent  for  my  service  the  day  before  I  was  to  set  out  a  light 
and  convenient  palanquin.  The  government  smith  had  re- 
paired the  iron- work,  but  it  had  no  cover  to  keep  out  sun 
or  rain,  and  I  was  a  little  amused  when,  soon  after  daylight 
the  next  morning,  two  middle-aged  females,  apparently  su- 
perintendents of  the  rest,  followed  by  three  and  twenty 
young  women,  came  with  sewing-apparatus,  to  fit  the  cover- 
ing on  my  palanquin. 

While  the  young  women,  under  the  direction  of  their 
superiors,  and  apparently  much  to  their  own  amusement 


302  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  x. 

and  that  of  the  men  engaged  in  the  court-yard  about  the 
packages,  were  cutting  the  cloth  and  arranging  the  palan- 
quin, a  friendly  chief  of  the  village,  who  came  to  take  leave 
of  me,  noticing  my  palanquin,  said  it  was  too  small  for  so 
long  a  journey,  and  offered  a  more  commodious  one  of  his 
own,  which  he  immediately  had  brought  to  the  place. 
When  this  arrived,  my  fellow-travelers  all  pronounced  it 
much  more  convenient  than  the  one  previously  provided. 
I  thankfully  accepted  it ;  and  the  needle- women,  when  they 
found  that  the  governor's  palanquin  was  not  likely  to  be 
used,  discontinued  their  stitching  and  returned  to  their 
dwellings. 


PREPARING  FOR  A  START.  303 


CHAPTER  XL 

Departure  from  Tamatave. — Slaughter  of  an  Ox,  and  subsequent  Rejoicing. 
— Arrival  of  Sodra. — Number  of  our  Party. — Native  Officers. — Dwell- 
ings of  the  People. — Native  Hospitality. — Forest  Explorations,  and  new 
Plants  and  Flowers. — Beautiful  Lake  Scenery. — The  Bird  beloved  by 
Cattle. — Aspect  of  Andevorandro,  and  Occupations  of  the  People. — Voy- 
age on  the  Iharoka. — The  Rofia  Palm. — Magnificent  Astraptua  Trees. — 
Speeches  on  offering  Presents. — Interview  with  an  Officer  from  the  Capi- 
tal.— Retail  of  spirituous  Liquors. — Aspect  of  the  distant  Country. — 
Apprehensions  from  Crocodiles. — Size,  Habits,  and  Ferocity  of  Croco- 
diles.— Crocodiles'  Eggs  collected  for  Food  or  Sale  in  the  Markets. — 
Perils  and  Privations  of  a  Party  of  Christian  Fugitives. — The  hot  Springs 
at  Ranomafana. — Native  Music. — Continuance  of  Rain. — Physical  Ap- 
pearance of  the  People,  and  Modes  of  dressing  their  Hair. — Appearance 
of  the  Rocks. — The  Traveler's-tree,  its  magnificent  Form  and  varied 
Uses. — Meals  on  the  Journey. — Exceedingly  difficult  Roads. — Objects  of 
Reverence  or  Worship. 

EARLY  in  the  morning  of  the  6th  of  August,  1856,  the 
bearers  came  and  removed  my  packages  into  the  court-yard 
of  my  house.  The  two  soldiers  who  had  slept  beneath  my 
roof  with  their  muskets  at  their  heads,  rolled  up  their  mats 
and  gave  them  to  a  boy  who  was  to  carry  them.  A  stout 
Betsimasaraka  chief,  named  Beoli,  belonging  to  the  district, 
but  who,  from  having  been  some  years  on  board  an  English 
frigate  for  the  purpose  of  learning  the  duties  of  a  sailor, 
spoke  broken  English,  so  as  to  be  generally  understood, 
and  had  been  appointed  by  the  authorities  captain  of  the 
maromities,  or  bearers,  came  with  a  gun,  and  a  powder- 
horn  slung  over  his  shoulder,  to  superintend  the  departure 
of  the  men  with  their  burdens.  I  had  hesitated  about  tak- 
ing the  packages,  but  the  governor  recommended  all  should 
be  taken  on  to  the  capital,  instead  of  being  left  to  be  sent 
for  afterward,  if  needed. 


304  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xi. 

When  the  bearers  had  taken  charge  of  their  packages, 
Beoli  took  me  to  the  chiefs  of  each  small  party,  which  con- 
sisted of  about  ten  men,  and  requested  me  to  write  down 
the  names  of  these  chiefs,  who,  he  said,  would  be  respons- 
ible for  the  safety  of  the  packages  carried  by  the  men  of 
their  party.  At  eight  o'clock  the  first  company  of  about 
forty  men  left  the  yard ;  and  about  three  hours  afterward 
a  second  party  set  out  with  the  remainder  of  the  packages. 
The  governor  sent  to  wish  me  a  safe  and  pleasant  journey, 
and  to  inform  me  that  he  had  sent  three  soldiers  with  an  ox 
to  Hivondro,'  where  I  expected  to  halt  for  the  night,  and 
where  the  ox  might  be  killed  as  provision  for  the  com- 
mencement of  the  journey.  The  second  in  command  also 
sent  to  say,  that  he  had  given  orders  for  a  bullock  to  be 
presented  to  me  at  two  different  stages  on  the  route.  A 
number  of  the  chiefs,  and  some  of  the  foreign  residents  also, 
came  to  take  leave ;  and  one  young  chief,  who  had  shown 
me  many  attentions,  and  rendered  me  much  assistance, 
when  he  had  taken  leave,  and  I  asked  him  if  there  was  any 
thing  I  could  give  him  as  a  token  of  my  sense  of  his  kind- 
ness, said  he  had  nothing  to  ask  of  me  unless  it  was  a  little 
book  which  he  had  seen  belonging  to  my  servant  on  a  for- 
mer visit. 

Soon  after  one  o'clock  I  shook  hands  with  my  friends, 
entered  my  palanquin,  and  set  out  on  my  journey  to  An- 
tananarivo. The  people  of  the  village  offered  their  salu- 
tations and  good-wishes  as  we  passed  along  toward  the 
plain  to  the  north-east  of  Tamatave.  My  palanquin  was 
very  much  like  a  sailor's  cot  fixed  to  a  strong  wooden  frame 
and  furnished  with  poles  projecting  four  or  five  feet  at  each 
end,  like  the  poles  of  a  sedan  chair.  About  a  foot  above 
the  upper  edges  of  the  cot,  a  sort  of  roof  or  covering  was 
formed  of  fine  rofia  cloth,  and  curtains  of  the  same  material 
were  fixed  along  the  sides.  These  were  turned  over  the  top 
in  fine  weather,  but  could  be  let  down  so  as  effectually  to 


CHAP.  xi.       FIRST  NIGHT'S  HALT  ON  THE  KOAD.  305 

exclude  the  rain.  Four  bearers  carried  the  palanquin,  a  re- 
lay of  four  more  walked  by  the  side,  and  four  others  carried 
my  cooking-apparatus  and  personal  luggage.  Our  road, 
for  a  considerable  distance,  led  over  a  sandy  plain,  present-- 
ing occasionally  long  lines  of  sand-banks  running  parallel 
with  the  ocean,  and  having  at  different  periods  formed  its 
boundary.  The  country  afterward  became  more  woody, 
and  we  often  passed  trees  of  large  size  and  vigorous  growth. 
About  half  past  three  we  reached  Anzolokafa,  a  straggling 
village  on  the  banks  of  the  Hivondro,  nine,  miles  distant 
from  Tamatave,  and  where  we  were  to  halt  for  the  night. 

My  bearers  hung  up  my  palanquin,  by  means  of  cords, 
to  the  rafters  of  the  house  in  which  we  were  to  sleep ;  so 
that  it  answered  the  double  purpose  of  a  carriage  by  day 
and  a  bed  by  night.  By  this  plan  I  was  also  effectually 
removed  from  the  dirt  of  the  floor  and  the  swarms  of  its 
inhabitants,  which  are  celebrated  for  the  numbers  in  which 
they  come  forth  by  night.  I  walked  to  an  elevated  part 
of  the  village,  which  commanded  an  extensive  view  of  the 
coast  and  the  wide  rolling  ocean,  from  its  junction  with  the 
lake  on  one  side,  and  the  placid  water  of  the  broad  Hivon- 
dro, and  the  fertile  and  level  country  on  the  other ;  and  I 
was  greatly  delighted  with  the  scene. 

In  less  than  an  hour  the  whole  party  had  arrived,  and 
among  them  the  aid-de-camp  of  the  prince  with  letters 
from  the  capital.  The  packages  were  deposited  in  the 
lapa,  a  sort  of  public  or  government  house,  erected  for  the 
use  of  travelers,  and  of  which  there  is  one,  if  not  more,  in 
every  village  of  any  consequence.  The  next  thing  they 
did  was  to  kill  the  bullock,  which  they  managed  very 
adroitly,  by  throwing  the  animal  on  its  side,  tying  its  legs, 
and  then  cutting  its  throat  with  a  large  knife.  It  was  soon 
cut  up,  without  stopping  to  take  off  the  skin ;  and  amid 
shouting,  and  dancing,  and  other  demonstrations  of  joy, 
the  meat  was  distributed  among  the  parties  around,  whose 

U 


:506  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xi. 

numbers  were  greatly  increased  by  the  wives  and  relations 
of  the  soldiers,  bearers,  and  others  who  accompanied  our 
party  from  Tamatave.  A  leg  and  part  of  the  rump,  and 
the  tongue,  were  appropriated  to  myself  and  my  immediate 
attendants.  A  steak  of  this,  a  fish  from  the  adjacent  lake, 
with  rice  and  vegetables,  and  a  cup  of  tea,  supplied  me 
with  an  acceptable  supper. 

After  dusk,  and  during  the  greater  part  of  the  evening, 
the  chopping  of  fuel,  and  blazing  of  fires,  each  surrounded 
by  perhaps  half  a  dozen  eooks,  some  boiling  rice,  others 
broiling,  baking,  or  roasting  their  meat  in  one  direction, 
the  laughter  and  mirth  of  those  who  were  sitting  on  the 
ground  at  their  evening  meal  as  seen  in  other  directions, 
presented  an  aspect  of  social  life  that  can  be  but  rarely  wit- 
nessed; and  it  attracted  my  attention  the  more  forcibly 
from  this  being  the  first  time  I  had  found  myself  surround- 
ed by  so  numerous  a  company  under  similar  circumstances. 

We  were  stirring  by  daylight  the  next  morning.  The 
men  went  forward  with  the  packages ;  my  attendant  pre- 
pared a  cup  of  tea,  which  I  took  with  a  biscuit  before  leav- 
ing my  lodgings.  One  of  my  bearers  was  missing,  but 
Sodra,  a  fine  strong  tall  young  man,  who  had,  in  a  manner 
somewhat  remarkable,  voluntarily  attached  himself  to  me 
ever  since  my  arrival,  had  followed  me  from  Tamatave,  and 
now  readily  completed  their  number.  After  arranging  with 
the  aid-de-camp  of  the  prince  about  the  forwarding  of  let- 
ters, I  took  leave  of  the  friends  who  intended  to  return  t<  > 
Tamatave.  About  eight  o'clock  we  embarked  in  canoe? 
upon  the  Hivondro,  a  broad  river,  said  to  be  greatly  infest- 
ed with  crocodiles.  After  proceeding  by  water  two  or 
three  miles,  we  landed,  and  traveled  about  ten  miles,  reach- 
ing the  small  village  of  Ambalatambaca  at  eleven  o'clock. 

The  rain  had  fallen  heavily  during  great  part  of  the  way. 
but  the  rofia  cloth  forming  the  cover  of  my  palanquin, 
.thickening  with  the  wet,  had  kept  the  inside  perfectly  dry. 


CHAP.  xi.  APPEARANCE  OF  THE  FEVER  DISTRICTS.  307 

On  the  way  I  saw  some  splendid  angraecums.  The  finest 
plants  were  growing  near  the  roots  of  leafless  bushes,  and 
having  their  own  roots  surrounded  with  long  green  grass. 
The  bushes  themselves  were  growing  in  loose  sand.  The 
very  healthy  state  of  these  plants  led  me  to  think  that  a 
moderate  amount  of  shade  and  moisture  suits  them  better 
than  the  dry  exposed  branches  or  trunks  of  dead  trees,  on 
which  I  have  often  seen  them  growing.  My  attention  was 
also  arrested  by  a  new  species  of  pandanus,  with  dwarf 
stalks  and  broad  pointed  leaves.  Among  the  varieties  of 
indigo,  a  plant  with  a  pink  or  red  flower  was  unusually  at- 
tractive ;  while  a  little  modest  blue  tradescantia,  somewhat 
resembling  the  wild  forget-me-not,  enlivened  the  borders 
of  the  path.  But  the  greatest  rarity  was  a  kind  of  large- 
growing  heath,  with  pink  or  lilac-colored  flowers.  In  some 
places  I  also  saw  large  masses  of  creeping  ferns  entirely  en- 
circling the  trees.  The  greater  part  of  the  road,  however, 
had  been  over  sandy  plains,  traversed  by  ridges  or  high 
banks  of  sand,  which  had  at  one  time  been  the  boundary 
of  the  sea.  We  also  passed  through  regions  of  dead, 
blanched,  barkless  forest-trees,  still  standing;  the  only 
signs  of  life  among  them  being  a  few  orchids  or  ferns  grow- 
ing in  the  forks  of  their  trunks  and  branches.  Sometimes 
we  passed  through  a  tract  of  thick  verdant  forest  of  large 
timber  ;  but  in  general  there  were  ponds  or  stagnant 
marshes  on  both  sides  of  the  path,  sometimes  overgrown 
with  long  grass  or  rushes,  and  just  the  region  for  fever. 
Along  the  borders  of  the  running  stream,  I  saw  numbers 
of  the  tropical  lettuce,  pistice  stratiotes,  growing  very  freely. 

Heavy  rain  detained  us  until  the  afternoon,  when  we  re- 
sumed our  journey,  and,  after  traveling  again  over  the  same 
sort  of  marshy  country,  we  reached  Tranomaro — literally, 
Many  houses — some  time  before  dusk,  and  halted  for  the 
night  at  a  house  on  the  border  of  an  extensive  lake. 

Finding  the  captain  of  the  bearers  and  the  interpreter 


308  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xi. 

both  addicted  to  drinking,  and  that  what  should  have  fur- 
nished provisions  for  the  men  had  been  spent  in  arrack,  I 
requested  Izaro,  a  friendly  chief  of  our  party,  and  one 
whom  I  thought  I  could  trust,  to  undertake  the  purchasing 
of  food  for  the  bearers  during  the  journey.  This  necessi- 
tated the  numbering  of  our  company,  that  he  might  know 
for  how  many  he  had  to  provide  rice  twice  a  day.  I  was 
a  little  startled  when  he  brought  me  the  list,  amounting  to 
upward  of  109 ;  but,  being  fully  persuaded  that  an  empty 
stomach  would  not  make  a  man's  burden  lighter,  or  in  any 
way  help  him  over  the  road,  I  furnished  Izaro  with  money, 
earnestly  requesting  him  to  see  that  all  the  bearers  of  my 
packages  were  regularly  supplied  with  food.  There  were 
two  vessels  loading  with  rice  at  Tamatave  when  we  left; 
and  the  demand  for  that  article  being  just  now  somewhat 
unusual,  it  was  not  at  every  village  in  this  neighborhood 
that  rice  could  be  obtained.  Manioc  of  excellent  quality, 
however,  was  abundant,  and  with  this  the-  people  were 
equally  well  satisfied. 

Again  the  rain  fell  heavily  throughout  the  night;  but, 
as  the  weather  cleared  soon  after  daybreak,  the  maromites 
set  off  with  their  packages.  Before  we  started,  Eamanana- 
soa,  a  Hova  officer,  arrived  from  Tamatave,  having  been 
sent  by  the  governor  to  see  that  every  needful  assistance 
was  rendered  us  on  the  road. 

Before  resuming  the  account  of  my  journey  to  the  capi- 
tal, it  may  be  well  to  offer  a  few  words  in  explanation  re- 
specting a  class  of  persons  which  I  may  frequently  have 
occasion  to  mention  in  the  course  of  my  narrative,  viz., 
the  native  officers.  These  are  not  persons  wearing  uni- 
forms, and  occupied  in  military  duties,  but  servants  of  the 
government,  holding  place  in  the  graduated  scale  of  rank 
established  in  the  government  service,  civil  as  well  as  mili- 
tary. In  many  instances  I  should  not  have  known  they 
were  officers  at  all,  had  not  the  attendants  and  others  intro- 


CHAP.  xi.  OFFICERS  AND  AIDS-DE-CAMPS.  309 

ducing  them,  announced  their  approach  and  said,  the  "Man- 
anboninahitra,"  man  or  men  "having  rank,"  are  coming. 
The  officers  were  not  distinguished  by  any  particular  dress, 
except  on  public  occasions,  when  those  of  highest  grade 
wore  some  sort  of  uniform.  In  traveling,  the  officers  are 
distinguished  by  having  a  sword,  generally  without  a 
sheath;  but  on  the  road  this  is  generally  carried  by  a 
slave,  who  follows  with  his  master's  baggage. 

The  aids-de-camp  also  form  a  class  which  I  may  have 
frequent  occasion  to  mention.  Dekana  is  the  native  term, 
borrowed  from  the  French.  This  does  not  designate  an  of- 
ficer appointed  to  special  duties,  but  is  applied  to  the  young 
men  in  the  army  above  the  ranks,  or  privates,  and  who  at- 
tach themselves,  as  adherents,  to  any  particular  chief,  and 
are  considered  devoted  to  the  interests  of  such  chief.  Their 
number  appeared  to  be  limited  only  by  the  popularity  of 
the  chief  or  the  prospects  of  advantage  to  his  followers. 
Thus,  when  a  young  man  was  spoken  of  as  Dekana  of  any 
chief,  it  seemed  to  mean  that  he  was  devoted  to  his  inter- 
ests, and  to  be  engaged  in  his  service. 

In  addition  to  the  cup  of  tea  and  biscuit  which  I  gener- 
ally took  every  morning  before  starting,  I  now  added  a 
small  portion  of  quinine,  one  or  two  grains,  which,  acting 
as  a  tonic,  might,  it  was  supposed,  render  me  less  likely  to 
be  affected  by  the  atmospheric  changes  to  which  I  was  ex- 
posed. 

Before  we  set  out,  Eabotobefe,  a  chief  from  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Hivondro,  brought  a  present  of  twenty  fine  fish, 
apparently  a  species  of  mullet,  which  I  gratefully  accepted, 
five  being  set  apart  for  myself  and  my  bearers,  and  the  rest 
distributed  among  the  people.  It  was  past  seven  o'clock 
before  I  set  out,  and  we  soon  entered  a  thick  forest.  Rich- 
er vegetation  I  had  seldom  seen.  Ferns  and  orchids  were 
abundant,  but  chiefly  of  sorts  I  had  observed  before.  A 
clump  of  Angrcecum  sesquipedale,  growing  within  a  yard  of 


310  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xi. 

my  path,  exhibited  some  of  the  finest  flowers  I  have  yet 
seen.  The  tails  seemed  even  to  exceed  a  foot  and  a  half  in 
length;  but  the  Angrcecum  superbum  was  most  abundant. 
Some  of  the  orchids  greatly  resembled  certain  varieties  of 
dendrobium,  being  about  the  size  and  form  of  D.  Pierardi. 
There  were  also  several  bulbs,  apparently  varieties  of  Wat- 
soni,  exhibiting  pink  and  lilac  flowers ;  but  I  had  not  the 
heart  to  stop  the  men,  so  as  to  allow  me  to  examine  them 
more  carefully.  The  little  slender  modest  blue-flowered  lo- 
belia appeared  in  great  abundance  during  some  parts  of  the 
journey.  But,  except  when  passing  through  the  forest,  the 
road  lay  over  wet,  marshy  ground,  having  a  sandy  surface, 
with  apparently  shallow  lagoons  spreading  a  mile  or  two 
toward  the  interior. 

After  traveling  about  eighteen  miles,  we  halted  at  An- 
dranokoditra,  a  village  of  about  a  dozen  houses,  standing 
on  a  high  bank  of  sandvrising  gradually  from  the  shore  of 
an  extensive  lagoon.  The  country  toward  the  interior  was 
well  wooded,  and  more  elevated  than  any  we  had  passed 
through,  and  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  lake,  the  little  vil- 
lage of  Manaoka,  embowered  among  trees,  and  standing  on 
a  rising  ground,  with  a  tall  flag-staff  in  the  centre,  from 
which  on  stated  occasions  the  ensign  of  the  sovereign  was 
unfurled,  added  much  to  the  charms  of  the  landscape. 

The  houses  in  the  villages  at  which  we  had  hitherto 
halted,  had  been  for  the  most  part  small,  slightly  construct- 
ed, and  dirty;  seldom  protecting  their  inmates  from  the 
heavy  rains  which  at  this  season  of  the  year  are  so  fre- 
quent. The  inhabitants  did  not  appear  to  suffer  from  want 
of  food ;  and  though  much  could  not  be  said  for  their 
cleanliness  or  comfort,  I  saw  but  comparatively  few  sick- 
persons.  The  people  who  reside  constantly  in  these  un- 
healthy districts  are  reported  to  enjoy  in  general  immunity 
from  the  fever  which  is  often  so  severe  and  fatal  to  natives 
from  more  elevated  and  healthy  districts  of  the  country,  as 
well  as  to  foreigners. 


CHAP.  xi.       TRAVELING  ALONG  THE  SEA-BEACH.  311 

Rain  again  fell  abundantly  through  the  night,  but  before 
seven  o'clock  in  the  morning  we  resumed  our  journey,  which 
led  for  some  distance  over  a  plain  partially  wooded,  on 
emerging  from  which  we  traveled  for  several  miles  along 
the  sea-beach.  The  morning  sun  shining  upon  the  long 
heaving  billows  of  the  ocean,  which  broke  in  lofty  roaring 
surges  on  the  shore,  increased  the  brilliance  and  grandeur 
of  the  scene.  As  the  wet  sand  afforded  the  firmest  path, 
the  bearers  kept  as  near  as  possible  to  the  water,  and  were 
often  up  to  their  knees  in  surf  and  foam.  When  passing 
over  the  dryer  sands  they  sunk  ankle-deep  at  every  step, 
and  this  portion  of  their  journey  must  have  been  extremely 
laborious.  At 'length,  after  passing  the  pleasantly-situated 
village  of  Irangy,  standing  on  a  rising  ground,  and  over- 
looking the  lake  of  the  same  name,  which  was  concealed 
from  us  by  the  high  ground  thickly  covered  with  wood  on 
the  side  nearest  the  sea,  we  proceeded  along  a  sandy  coun- 
try, having  a  sheet  of  water  a  mile  or  more  in  width  ex- 
tending for  miles  on  our  right.  On  their  way  over  a  grassy 
plain  my  bearers  halted  for  a  minute  or  two,  when  I  asked 
them  if  they  wished  to  rest  awhile,  as  I  was  quite  willing 
to  do  so.  They  said  they  did  not  wish  to  halt,  and  were 
quite  strong  to  proceed ;  and,  to  give  me  a  proof  that  they 
were  so,  one  of  them,  who  walked  beside  the  palanquin, 
bounded  off  at  full  speed  toward  a  clump  of  trees  bearing 
edible  fruit,  jumping  over  a  bush  three  or  four  feet  high  on 
his  way.  He  soon  overtook  his  companions  with  a  number 
of  the  ripe  fruit  of  the  voantakat  a  species  of  strychnos,  which 
he  distributed  among  them.  About  ten  o'clock,  having 
traveled  eighteen  miles,  we  reached  Ivavongy,  which  I  was 
told  was  the  first  village  in  the  country  of  the  Betanimena. 

My  bearers,  having  perhaps  had  the  lightest  load,  were 
considerably  in  advance  of  the  rest  of  the  party ;  and  I  ar- 
rived at  this  place  before  the  interpreter  or  any  of  the  offi- 
cers, who  generally  informed  the  people  of  the  villages  at 


312  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xi. 

which,  we  stopped  of  my  name,  objects,  etc. ;  but  the  ab- 
sence of  this  information  in  the  present  instance  made  no 
difference  in  the  exercise  of  that  hospitality  which  is  always 
so  welcome  to  a  stranger.  As  soon  as  my  palanquin  was 
set  down,  a  chief  spread  a  mat  in  the  shade  and  requested 
me  to  be  seated ;  another  brought  me  a  bunch  of  ripe  bana- 
nas, two  or  three  of  which  I  found  very  refreshing.  Two 
chiefs,  who  appeared  to  be  travelers,  made  many  inquiries 
as  to  my  object  in  going  to  the  capital.  One  asked  wheth- 
er I  had  any  military  uniforms  to  sell.  The  other  asked 
whether  I  was  a  missionary  or  a  doctor.  He  said  he  had 
heard  that  I  took  many  likenesses  of  the  people  when  I  was 
in  the  country  before,  and  that  he  had  seen  some  of  them, 
and  wished  to  know  if  I  intended  to  take  the  likenesses  of 
the  chiefs  at  the  capital. 

When  the  rest  of  our  party  arrived,  I  crossed  over  the 
Lake  Kasoabe  to  a  group  of  houses  on  the  opposite  shore, 
as  the  lapa,  or  queen's  house,  was  there,  and  would  be  more 
comfortable  than  any  of  those  around  us.  While  waiting 
on  the  beach  until  the  canoe  was  ready,  I  observed  some  of 
the  men  collecting  quantities  of  a  dark-colored  but  shining 
micaceous  sand,  which  they  afterward  dried  and  carried  to 
the  capital,  for  the  writers  there  to  use  instead  of  blotting- 
paper.  On  reaching  the  opposite  side  of  the  lake  I  was  con- 
ducted to  the  house  appropriated  to  the  use  of  travelers 
connected  with  the  government,  and  the  chief  of  the  place 
soon  afterward  brought  me  a  couple  of  mullets  and  a  small 
basket  of  eggs. 

The  internal  arrangements  of  the  house  differed  in  some 
respects  from  those  of  the  country  on  the  other  side  of  the 
lake,  and  the  difference,  I  was  told,  characterized  the  houses 
of  the  Betanimena.  The  hearth,  or  cooking-place,  was  sit- 
uated toward  the  northeast  corner  of  the  house,  and  at  each 
corner  of  the  raised  curb  of  stones  surrounding  the  hearth  a 
strong  post  ten  or  twelve  feet  high  was  fixed  in  the  ground. 


CHAP.  xi.  EXPLOEATIONS  OF  THE  FOEEST.  313 

Four  feet  above  the  fire-place  the  space  between  the  posts 
was  filled  by  laths  or  sticks  placed  across,  and  about  an  inch 
apart ;  three  feet  higher  was  a  second  stage  of  the  same 
kind,  and  a  third  at  the  top  of  the  posts.  The  natives  call- 
ed this  structure  over  the  fire-place  sahala,  and  said  it  way 
used  as  a  place  for  their  cooking-utensils,  as  well  as  a  place 
for  dried  meat  or  fish,  or  any  other  articles  they  wished  to 
1  keep  free  from  damp. 

In  the  afternoon,  as  Izaro  had  gone  to  some  of  the  neigh- 
boring villages  in  search  of  rice,  and  as,  on  that  account,  we 
should  not  proceed  until  the  morning,  I  set  off  in  search  of 
plants  to  the  adjacent  forest,  which  extended  its  tempting 
covert  to  within  a  few  hundred  yards  of  the  houses.  The 
first  object  which  arrested  my  attention  was  what  the  na- 
tives told  me  was  an  old  tangena,  or  poison-tree,  which, 
though  the  trunk  was  decayed,  still  exhibited  vigorous  and 
leafy  branches  with  blossoms  and  fruit.  As  I  penetrated 
farther  into  the  forest,  I  was  struck  with  the  profuse  and 
luxuriant  vegetation.  The  trees,  though  hard- wooded  and 
slow-growing,  were  high,  and  their  branches  interlaced  at 
the  top;  while  the  undergrowth  was  thick  with  tangled 
bushes  and  creepers,  whose  stalks,  sometimes  as  large  as 
cables,  presented  one  impenetrable  mass.  Seeking  here 
and  there  for  gaps  made  by  the  bullocks,  and  cutting  and 
winding  my  way  wherever  practicable,  attempting  to  reach 
every  tree  that  had  any  thing  green  on  its  trunk  or  branches, 
I  saw  a  number  of  orchids,  but  none  were  new.  Ferns  were 
abundant ;  and  among  them  the  Davdllia  polyantha,  which 
the  natives  call  ampanga  mamahily,  was  flourishing  most 
luxuriantly.  The  greatest  rarity  I  met  with  in  the  forest 
was  a  new  kind  of  platycerum  much  resembling  P.  stem- 
maria,  growing  on  the  trunks  of  trees  twenty  or  thirty  feet 
from  the  ground. 

On  emerging  from  the  forest,  I  passed  along  the  edge  of 
a  hill  thickly  overgrown  with  a  large  kind  of  heath,  called 


314  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xi. 

by  the  natives  anzavidy,  and  frequently  a  couple  of  feet 
higher  than  our  heads.  The  blossom  had  been  abundant; 
but  I  could  find  no  seeds.  I  also  met  with  a  number  of 
beautiful  plants,  from  four  to  six  feet  high,  with  leaves  -like 
a  pleroma,  and  flowers  resembling  a  petunia,  having  a  rich 
scarlet  throat  and  creamy  lip.  I  told  the  man  who  accom- 
panied me,  a  native  of  the  place,  if,  when  the  seeds  were  ripe, 
he  would  gather  them  for  me,  I  would  pay  him  well  for  his 
trouble ;  but  I  had  little  hope  of  securing  any,  for  the  na- 
tives can  not  understand  why  we  should  attach  any  value 
to  such  things.  I  afterward  found,  in  a  damp,  shady  place, 
two  or  three  flowers  somewhat  like  achimenes  in  form,  and 
of  a  deep  blue  color ;  and  in  a  dry,  open  space  adjacent,  I 
met  with  a  number  of  plants  of  the  same  species,  with  abun- 
dance of  ripe  seed,  which  I  carefully  preserved. 


BICE  GRANARY. 


In  the  evening  Izaro  returned,  having  obtained  a  good 
supply  of  rice.     Some  chiefs  of  my  own  party,  and  two  or 


CHAP.  xi.  BEAUTIFUL  LAKE  SCENERY.  315 

three  of  their  friends  from  the  neighborhood,  came  to  my 
lodgings,  and  we  spent  some  time  in  reading  and  in  impor- 
tant and  cheering  conversation.  After  which  they  retired, 
and  I  wrote  up  my  journal. 

Our  next  day's  journey  was  to  be  by  water  upon  the  lake 
Imoasa,  which,  as  well  as  the  spacious  lake  we  had  crossed, 
is  said  to  be  infested  with  crocodiles,  which  have  occasion- 
ally seized  and  destroyed  cattle  while  crossing  the  ford. 
The  morning  was  wet,  and  it  was  between  seven  and  eight 
o'clock  before  I  started  in  the  last  canoe  of  our  fleet,  and 
though  it  rained  most  of  the  way  many  objects  of  interest 
presented  themselves  as  we  passed  along.  We  saw  a  few 
water-fowl,  and  passed  a  number  of  fences  or  inclosures  for 
catching  fish.  We  saw  also  large  patches  of  the  white  water- 
lily.  The  lake  itself  was  about  a  mile  across,  with  woody 
banks,  which  on  the  side  toward  the  interior  were  often  rocky 
and  steep,  presenting  in  some  places  marks  upon  the  rocks 
high  above  the  water,  which  appeared  to  indicate  the  level 
of  the  water  at  some  former  period.  The  rocks  themselves 
appeared  to  be  sandstone,  but  above  these  in  several  places 
along  the  shore,  and  in  the  neighborhood,  the  upper  parts 
of  the  high  ground  seemed  to  consist  of  loose  sand,  resem- 
bling that  spread  along  the  edge  of  the  lake,  which  con- 
sisted chiefly  of  pulverized  quartz. 

The  vegetation  on  the  borders  of  the  lake  presented 
greater  variety  than  I  had  previously  witnessed.  Man- 
groves, magnolias,  palmistes,  two  or  three  species  of  panda- 
nus,  one  of  them  trifoliated  and  exceedingly  graceful  in  its 
habit,  with  the  broad-leaved  traveler's-tree,  were  all  grow- 
ing together.  The  whole  was  enlivened  by  the  frequent 
appearance  of  the  plant  with  a  petunia-shaped  flower  which 
I  had  met  with  on  the  previous  day,  and  which,  with  its 
scarlet  and  pink  flowers,  looked  not  unlike  a  large  species 
of  azalea  covered  with  blossoms.  The  angraecum  was 
abundant,  and  this  in  full  flower,  as  well  as  the  large  bird's- 


316  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  xi. 

nest  ferns,  might  sometimes  be  seen  at  the  end  of  the  trunk 
of  a  dead  tree  that  stretched  its  crooked  length  twenty  or 
thirty  feet  over  the  water. 

Toward  noon  we  reached  the  end  of  the  lake  Imoasa. 
and  landed  at  a  place  bearing  the  not  very  inviting  name 
of  Andavaka-menarana,  hole  of  serpents.  The  rain  had 
now  ceased,  and  while  the  men  were  preparing  the  break- 
fast I  could  not  resist  the  temptation  to  explore  the  ad- 
jacent wood.  A  cluster  of  long,  jointed,  slender-stalked 
shrubs  growing  by  the  side  of  a  stream,  and  bearing  clus- 
ters of  pendulous  flowers  beautifully  white,  and  larger  and 
longer  in  the  tube  than  the  Stephanotus  floribunda,  first  at- 
tracted my  attention;  but  I  searched  in  vain  for  seeds. 
The  chief  rarity  I  met  with  was  a  climbing  plant  with  leaf 
and  stalk  somewhat  resembling  vanilla,  or  Dendrobium 
chrysaniheum ;  but  on  closer  inspection  it  proved  to  be  nei- 
ther of  these,  though  an  exceedingly  curious  plant.  A  sin- 
gle flattish  stem  nearly  an  inch  in  breadth,  and  sending  out 
small  fibres  on  each  side,  extended  up  the  stem  of  a  large 
tree  for  thirty  or  forty  feet,  and  then  sent  out  smaller  shoots 
which  spread  among  the  branches.  There  were  no  flowers 
at  the  time,  but  the  natives  told  me  it  bore  blue  or  purple 
flowers  along  the  sides  of  the  small  branches.  They  called 
it  tandraho.  I  subsequently  saw  another  plant  of  the  same 
species,  which  had  along  the  sides  of  the  smaller  branches 
yellow  round-shaped  protuberances  resembling  in  structure 
the  seed  vessels  of  the  Canna  indica,  or  Indian  shot,  but  the 
seeds  were  soft  and  unripe. 

We  resumed  our  journey  soon  after  noon,  passing  through 
a  beautiful  and  fertile  country  covered  with  herbage  and 
ornamented  by  magnificent  trees  standing  singly  or  in 
clumps.  In  portions  of  the  ground  that  had  been  recently 
cleared  and  inclosed,  and  the  vegetation  destroyed  by  burn- 
ing, the  trees  which  were  still  standing  deprived  of  their 
smaller  branches  and  great  part  of  their  bark  were  of  enor- 


CHAP.  xi.  BIRD-FRIEND  OF  THE  CATTLE.  317 

mous  size,  and  the  soil  seemed  exceedingly  rich.  I  had  to- 
day, as  well  as  on  previous  occasions,  passed  herds  of  cat- 
tle, either  feeding  or  reclining  on  the  grassy  plains ;  and  I 
had  noticed  that  they  were  always  accompanied  by  a  num- 
ber of  birds  nearly  white,  about  the  size  of  a  pigeon,  but  in 
shape  more  like  a  stork,  having  long  legs  and  neck.  It 
appeared  a  different  bird  from  the  red-billed  pique  boef. 
These  birds  seemed  to  be  the  constant  companions  of  the 
cattle,  and  attracted  by  the  flies  or  other  insects  about  the 
oxen,  and  passed  in  and  out  among  them,  close  to  them, 
and  even  upon  them  when  grazing  or  lying  down,  with  the 
most  perfect  freedom  and  confidence.  On  inquiring  of  the 
natives  about  them  I  was  told  that  they  were  called  vorom- 
potsy,  white  bird,  or  vorontianomby ;  literally,  birds  be- 
loved by  cattle,  as  they  always  followed  the  herds  and  de- 
voured the  flies  which  tormented  them.  The  number  of 
birds  was  always  proportioned  to  that  of  the  cattle ;  if  the 
latter  were  but  few,  they  would  be  attended  by  only  two  or 
three  birds ;  but  if  the  herd  was  large,  there  would  be  great 
numbers  of  birds  in  small  companies  among  them.  I  re- 
gretted that  I  did  not  obtain  a  specimen  of  these  useful 
birds. 

This  afternoon  we  passed  a  piece  of  water  called  Eano- 
mainty,  or  Black- water,  and  shortly  after  reached  Andevo- 
randro,  a  village  of  perhaps  two  hundred  houses,  standing 
on  the  banks  of  the  Iharoka,  the  largest  river  in  the  district 
of  Betanimena.  My  palanquin  was  set  down  at  the  house 
of  the  head  man  of  the  village ;  and  on  reaching  the  door- 
way I  beheld  between  twenty  and  thirty  men  seated  on  the 
ground,  one  or  two  of  their  number  pouring  out  arrack  from 
long  thick  bamboo  canes  into  large  basins,  which  the  rest 
were  drinking  from  and  handing  round.  Many  were  shout- 
ing or  singing  a  kind  of  monotonous  song ;  others  were  add- 
ing to  the  din  by  beating  time  with  a  stick  upon  a  long 
hollow  bamboo,  an  amusement  in  which  the  natives  some- 


318  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAK.  CHAP.  xi. 

times  spend  a  great  part  of  the  night.  When  the  chief  man 
came  and  requested  this  party  to  remove,  they  went  to  a 
kind  of  outhouse  in  the  neighborhood,  but  the  arrival  of  so 
many  travelers  drew  away  some  from  their  drunken  ca- 
rousal. 

When  I  hatf  seen  the  packages  all  deposited  in  the  gov- 
ernment-house, I  walked  through  this  and  two  adjoining 
villages  to  the  junction  of  the  river  with  the  sea.  The 
opening  was  narrow,  and  the  mouth  of  the  river,  like  most 
of  the.  openings  we  had  passed,  was  nearly  blocked  up  with 
sand.  This  neighborhood  appeared  more  populous  than 
any  I  had  before  seen.  The  people  seemed  industrious  and 
well  off.  There  were  several  small  gardens  near  the  vil- 
lage ;  and  I  noticed  a  number  of  women  sitting  outside  their 
house,  and  employed  in  peeling  the  leaflets  of  the  rofia  palm, 
and  splitting  the  tough  thin  skin  into  threads  for  weaving : 
others  I  saw  weaving,  with  the  same  sort  of  material,  a 
strong  species  of  cloth,  for  which  this  neighborhood  is  cele- 
brated. This  village  had  formerly  been  a  place  of  some 
importance,  and  before  the  time  of  Radama  was  a  sort  of 
independent  or  feudal  town,  governed  by  its  own  chief,  who 
had  the  power  of  life  and  death,  and  rendered  only  a  modi- 
fied homage  or  military  service  to  the  most  powerful  chief 
of  the  province. 

In  the  evening  Izaro  distributed  the  rice  to  the  bearers. 
The  men  belong  to  two  divisions  of  the  people,  and  these 
divisions  are  subdivided  into  parties  of  ten  men  each ;  each 
division  received  a  couple  of  sacks  containing  about  one 
hundred  pounds  each.  Each  division  then  seized  their 
sacks,  and,  spreading  a  mat  on  the  ground,  emptied  the 
whole  out  in  a  heap,  and  measured  out  the  shares  to  every  ' 
party  with  much  noise,  and,  I  suppose,  greater  satisfaction, 
for  they  all  thanked  me  for  the  supply.  At  every  halting- 
place  the  head  of  the  party  serves  out  the  supply  for  each 
individual ;  and,  as  the  inhabitants  of  the  place  are  always 


CHAP.  xi.  THE  EIVEK  IHAROKA.  319 

willing  to  lend  cooking-vessels,  and  fuel  is  abundant,  this 
meal  of  the  bearers  is  soon  ready. 

Early  the  next  morning  a  number  of  canoes,  most  of 
which  had  been  sheltered  among  high  reeds  on  the  opposite 
side  of  the  river,  were  brought  to  the  edge  of  the  water,  and 
loaded  with  the  packages.  The  canoes  are  made  out  of  a 
single  tree,  generally  the  inophyllum,  and  are  some  of  them 
very  large,  with  bottoms  as  round  as  a  barrel,  and  no  out- 
rigger, yet  the  natives  seem  to  have  no  fear  of  their  upset- 
ting. On  this  occasion  I  witnessed  from  my  door  the  only 
thing  like  a  fracas  which  occurred  within  my  observation 
during  my  stay  in  the  country.  Several  of  the  men  ap- 
peared to  be  quarreling  about  the  adjustment  of  the  Ipad 
in  one  of  the  canoes,  and  blows  with  the  fist  were  soon  in- 
terchanged quite  as  freely  as  words.  Indeed,  there  was  so 
little  noise  that  the  former  seemed  to  be  involuntarily  sub- 
stituted for  the  latter.  One  of  the  officers,  however,  soon 
restored  order.  A  man  belonging  to  the  place  had  taken 
his  seat  in  one  of  the  canoes,  which  the  others  declared  was 
already  too  deeply  laden.  THe  chief  of  the  village  ordered 
him  repeatedly  to  come  on  shore,  but  he  kept  his  seat  until 
one  of  the  soldiers  walked  into  the  water,  and,  taking  hold 
of  his  arm,  requested  him  not  to  give  them  any  trouble, 
upon  which  the  man  rose  up  and  very  quietly  stepped  out 
of  the  canoe. 

Our  party  and  packages  filled  sixteen  canoes.  Another 
canoe  was  subsequently  provided  for  some  of  the  officers, 
who  had  remained  a  short  time  on  the  shore  to  see  that 
nothing  had  been  left  behind.  Thus  far  our  course  had 
been  southward  and  near  the  coast,  but  shortly  after  leav- 
ing Andevorandro,  we  entered  a  broad  part  of  the  Eiver 
Iharoka,  and  steered  in  a  westerly  direction.  The  morning 
was  fine  and  cool,  the  water  smooth,  and  the  scenery  on 
both  sides  exhibited  new  forms  of  vegetation  in  great  luxu- 
riance. The  country  on  the  right  was  flat,  in  many  parte 


320  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  xi. 

planted  with  sugar-cane.  The  banks  on  the  opposite  side 
were  high,  and  presented  a  succession  of  villages,  of  from 
twenty  to  fifty  houses,  with  surrounding  plantations,  and 
often  enlivened  by  the  natives  in  their  white  lambas  passing 
to  and  fro.  Here  the  singularly  rich  and  stately  rofia  palm, 
Sagus  ruffia,  was  so  abundant  and  conspicuous  as  to  impart 
something  of  the  character  of  its  own  graceful  form  to  the 
surrounding  scenery.  While  thus  sailing  smoothly  along, 
we  passed  several  patches  of  the  beautiful  Nymphcea  ccerulia 
in  blossom ;  and  I  do  not  remember  ever  experiencing  more 
deeply  the  feelings  of  admiration  and  delight  produced  by 
new,  and  rich,  and  beautiful  aspects  of  nature  than  during 
my  passage  along  this  charming  river.  The  feelings  of  my 
fellow-passengers  in  the  same  canoe  harmonizing  with  my 
own,  our  conversation  on  the  wonders  of  creation,  the.  evi- 
dences of  divine  wisdom  and  goodness,  greatly  increased 
our  enjoyment  of  the  scenery. 

After  proceeding  about  a  couple  of  hours,  and  passing 
Marovata  and  Batrasina,  two  villages  on  our  right,  standing 
on  mounds  of  sandstone,  and  the  straggling  village  of  Ma- 
romandia,  stretching  along  the  top  of  the  high  land  on  our 
left,  we  left  the  broad  river,  and  entered  a  narrow  creek  be- 
tween high  banks  of  clay.  Several  birds  here  attracted  my 
notice,  among  them  a  pretty  little  purple-colored  kingfisher. 
But  my  attention  was  chiefly  arrested  by  the  flowers  on  the 
banks  of  the  narrow  stream,  among  them  a  plant  which 
looked  like  a  variety  of  herbaceous  hibiscus,  with  bright 
yellow  flowers,  and  gigantic  arum,  A.  costatum,  or  A.  colo- 
casia,  which  grew  by  the  edge  of  the  water  to  the  height  of 
ten  or  twelve  feet,  and  so  near  that  I  could  reach  them  on 
both  sides  as  we  passed  along. 

But  the  most  magnificent  objects  were  the  fine  trees  of 
Astrapcea  Wallichii,  or  viscosa.  The  name  of  this  Malagasy 
plant  was  derived  from  the  word  for  lightning,  on  account 
of  the  brilliancy  of  its  flowers ;  and  Sir  Joseph  Paxton  and 


CHAP.  xi.  MAGNIFICENT  ASTRAPJE.ZG.  321 

Dr.  Lindley  have  thus  spoken  of  A.  Wallichii:  "  One  of  the 
finest  plants  ever  introduced.  And  when  loaded  with  ite 
magnificent  flowers,  we  think  nothing  can  exceed  its  grand- 
eur."* I  had  seen  a  good-sized  plant  growing  freely  at 
Mauritius,  but  here  it  was  in  its  native  home,  luxuriating 
on  the  banks  of  the  stream,  its  trunk  a  foot  in  diameter,  its 
broad-leaved  branches  stretching  over  the  water,  and  its 
large  pink,  globular,  composite  flowers,  three  or  four  inches 
in  diameter,  suspended  at  the  end  of  a  fine  down-covered 
stalk  nine  inches  or  a  foot  in  length.  These,  hanging  by 
hundreds  along  the  course  of  the  stream,  surpassed  any 
thing  of  the  kind  I  had  seen  or  could  possibly  have  im- 
agined. I  frequently  met  with  the  astrapaea  afterward,  but 
always  growing  near  the  water,  and  its  branches  frequently 
stretching  over  the  lake  or  river. 

After  reaching  the  landing-place,  we  passed  about  a  mile 
over  stiff  wet  clay,  and  had  to  cross  a  piece  of  water  so  deep , 
that  Sodra  was  obliged  to  place  me  across  his  shoulders  in 
order  to  keep  me  dry.  "We  then  walked  along  a  path  ankle- 
deep  in  mud,  until  a  little  after  ten  o'clock,  when  we  reached 
Ambohibohazo,  another  considerable  village,  formerly  gov- 
erned by  its  own  independent  chief,  whose  power  was  su- 
preme over  the  lives  and  property  of  the  people. 

On  reaching  a  halting-place,  especially  if  toward  the  even- 
ing, the  head  man  of  the  village  soon  learned  from  some  of 
the  officers  of  our  party  the  general  objects  of  my  journey, 
and  shortly  afterward  came  with  a  present  of  rice  and  fowls, 
or  other  kind  of  provision,  for  my  refreshment.  The  quan- 
tity brought  seemed  to  bear  some  proportion  to  the  size  and 
importance  of  the  place ;  and  when  the  rice,  and  fowls,  etc., 
were  laid  on  the  floor,  the  chiefs  who  brought  them  gener- 
ally apologized  for  the  smallness  of  the  present,  but  desired 
thus  to  express  their  loyalty  to  their  rulers  and  their  good- 
will toward  the  friend  of  the  queen  and  the  prince  who  had 

*  Paxton's  Botanical  Dictionary,  p.  33. 

X 


322  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xi. 

come  to  their  village.  I  then,  in  a  few  words,  expressed 
my  sense  of  their  kindness,  but  the  Hova  officers  replied  at 
much  greater  length,  and  the  speaking  at  times  was  quite  a 
formal  and  protracted  affair  on  both  sides.  It  seemed  to  be 
a  kind  of  acknowledgment  of  the  high  descent  of  official 
sacredness  and  supreme  authority  of  the  reigning  family,  as 
well  as  a  declaration  of  fidelity  and  attachment  on  the  part 
of  the  chiefs  of  the  place,  with  a  recognition  and  acceptance 
of  the  same  on  behalf  of  the  sovereign  and  her  son  by  the 
Hova  officers.  No  return  on  my  part  for  these  presents 
would  have  been  allowed  by  the  officers,  but  I  was  always 
glad,  on  departing  in  the  morning,  to  give  a  piece  of  cotton 
cloth  or  other  useful  article  to.  the  owner  of  the  house  in 
which  I  had  slept ;  and  if  the  mistress  of  the  house  had  a 
child  in  her  arms,  which  was  frequently  the  case,  and  it  was 
not  too  much  frightened  at  my  white  face  and  strange  dress 
to  allow  me  to  place  a  showy  handkerchief  or  piece  of  cloth 
over  its  shoulders,  this  manner  of  expressing  my  sense  of 
their  hospitality  seemed  to  be  equally  gratifying  to  parents 
and  child. 

As  this  was  one  of  the  places  at  which  Kainebehevitra, 
meaning  "Father  of  great  thoughts"  the  second  officer  at 
Tamatave,  had  ordered  a  bullock  to  be  given  to  me,  the 
people  in  charge  of  his  property  here  drove  a  fine  ox  near 
my  house  in  the  afternoon,  and  presented  it  to  me  in  the 
name  of  their  chief.  The  animal  was  caught,  killed,  and 
distributed  by  sunset,  and  the  bustle  and  noise  around  a 
number  of  fires  in  the  neighborhood  during  the  early  part 
of  the  evening  indicated  the  zest  which  attended  the  prep- 
aration of  the  evening  meal.  My  own  bearers  and  others 
close  by  became  afterward  exceedingly  noisy,  and,  much  to 
my  annoyance,  kept  up  their  shouting  and  screaming  till 
long  after  midnight. 

The  next  morning  was  rainy  and  dark,  and  the  chiefs 
proposed  to  rest  here  for  the  day  to  rearrange  the  pack- 


CHAP.  xi.  GOVERNMENT  BEARERS  EXEMPT  FROM  TAXES.  323 

ages  and  to  supply  the  places  of  eleven  of  the  men,  who  had 
departed  during  the  night  before  last,  after  having  received 
their  supply  of  rice  for  two  or  three  days  in  advance.  I 
was  somewhat  surprised  to  find  that  the  men  who  had  left 
had  the  lightest  loads.  Two  of  them  had  only  a  small  box 
of  tea,  about  ten  pounds'  weight,  and  a  black  leather  bag  to 
carry  between  them,  and  other  two  had  had  only  my  hat- 
box  and  a  small  bundle  of  bedding  for  their  load.  Some 
of  the  men  said  they  had  relations  in  the  neighborhood,  and 
took  the  opportunity  of  being  near  to  pay  them  a  visit,  but 
I  apprehended  that  their  going  might  arise  from  its  being 
government  service  in  which  they  were  employed,  and  for 
which  they  consequently  expected  to  receive  no  pay.  I  re- 
quested the  chief  who  provided  their  rice  to  write  down 
the  names  of  all  those  who  remained,  and  to  tell  them  that, 
whatever  they  might  receive  from  others,  I  would  pay  ev- 
ery one  who  should  continue  with  me  until  we  reached  the 
capital.  I  had  proposed  to  do  this  before,  but  the  officers 
objected.  I  had  also  heard  that  the  districts  around  Ta- 
matave.  from  whence  bearers  for  the  government  are  taken, 
were,  in  consideration  of  this  service,  exempt  from  certain 
taxes  which  are  levied  on  the  others.  Whenever  any  of 
the  bearers  absconded,  the  chiefs  of  the  place  provided  oth- 
er men  to  carry  the  packages  which  had  been  left  to  the 
next  post  or  government  station. 

The  weather  improved  during  the  forenoon,  and  I  walk- 
ed through  the  village,  which  stands  on  the  top  of  a  hill  of 
stiff  yellow  clay.  The  ground  immediately  around  is  wet 
and  swampy,  having  considerable  portions  cultivated  with 
rice.  The  country  beyond  appeared  more  woody,  and  the 
prospect  on  every  side  was  bounded  by  high  land,  or  dis- 
tant mountains.  Gardens  belonging'  to  the  villagers  cover- 
ed the  sides  of  the  hill,  and  their  houses  were  in  tolerably 
good  condition.  Many  of  the  women  were  employed  in 
weaving,  others  in  dyeing  their  materials ;  but  I  noticed  in 


324  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAB.  CHAP.  xi. 

two  of  the  houses  a  barrel  of  arrack,  with  a  brass  tap  in  the 
end  of  it,  standing  near  the  door,  and  a  number  of  natives 
sleeping  on  the  ground  round  about  it.  These  houses  are 
the  native  grog-shops,  which  have  been  recently  establish- 
ed, and  seem  likely  to  prove  prolific  sources  of  idleness, 
poverty,  and  wretchedness  to  the  people.  I  was  informed 
that,  after  the  killing  and  the  distribution  of  the  bullock  on 
the  previous  day,  some  of  the  bearers  had  bartered  their 
beef  for  arrack,  and  this  it  was  which  had  made  them  so 
noisy  during  the  night,  and  so  disinclined  to  move  forward 
the  next  morning. 

A  young  officer,  traveling  from  the  capital  to  the  coast, 
stopped  at  my  house  to-day,  to  offer  any  assistance  he  could 
render,  as  well  as  to  hear  and  tell  the  news.  He  asked  a 
number  of  questions,  and,  among  others,  whether  I  could 
make  balloons ;  for  he  said  there  was  a  French  resident  at 
the  capital  who  could  make  balloons  go  up  in  the  air,  with 
fire  inside,  and  could  make  looking-glasses,  and  cast  can- 
non. When  I  acknowledged  my  inferiority  to  the  French 
gentleman  in  all  these  respects,  he  added :  "  But  you  can 
take  likenesses,  for  I  have  seen  some,  and  you  have  medi- 
cine." He  had  brought  me  a  trifling  present,  and  asked  for 
a  little  medicine  for  the  fever,  which  I  promised  to  send 
him.  When  he  shook  hands  with  me  on  leaving,  I  could 
not  but  pity  the  poor  fellow,  for  his  hand  was  burning  with 
fever  at  the  time.  The  natives  from  the  high  and  healthy 
provinces  in  the  interior  suffer  in  the  low  regions  of  the 
country  quite  as  much  as  Europeans  do  from  the  fever,  of 
which  they  entertain  great  dread. 

The  next  morning  we  resumed  our  journey.  The  road 
out  of  the  village  was  quite  as  bad  as  that  by  which  we 
had  entered.  In  descending  the  hill  my  bearers  sank  near- 
ly knee-deep  in  mud,  and,  on  reaching  the  bottom,  they  had 
to  cross  a  wide  piece  of  water  reaching  up  to  their  waists, 
and  then  make  their  way  along  the  edges  of  a  series  of  soft 


CHAP.  xi.  ASPECT  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  325 

flooded  rice-grounds.  This  was  the  only  road  from  the  vil- 
lage. We  next  crossed  a  succession  of  low  clayey  hills> 
and  their  intervening  valleys,  where  the  water-course  at 
the  bottom  was  often  widened  out  to  join  a  rice-plantation. 
Voitsara,  the  first  village  we  passed,  was  almost  surrounded 
by  plantations  fenced  with  stakes  of  a  fine  species  of  ery  th- 
rina,  many  of  which  seemed  to  have  taken  root  in  the  pro- 
lific soil,  and  thus  sent  forth  large  branches  bearing  numer- 
ous clusters  of  rich  scarlet  flowers. 

At  the  next  village,  Maroomby,  considerable  portions  of 
ground  were  inclosed,  and  planted.  Under  cultivation  it 
scarcely  was,  for,  in  the  rich  black  earth,  the  weeds  and 
brushwood  grew  with  such  rapidity  and  strength  as  almost 
to  dispute  with  the  crops  possession  of  the  soil ;  and,  but 
for  the  clusters  of  banana- trees,  with  their  large  bunches  of 
fruit,  or  the  rows  of  sugar-cane,  fifteen  or  eighteen  feet 
high,  and  occasional  patches  of  strong,  rank  tobacco-plants, 
the  whole  was  so  overgrown  with  bushes  and  creepers  as 
to  resemble  an  uncleared  waste  more  than  a  garden.  Here 
were  a  number  of  large  erythrina-trees  in  full  blossom.  I 
also  saw  the  Aleurites  triloba,  or  candle-nut-tree,  as  well  as 
other  old  South  Sea  Island  acquaintances,  but  most  of  the 
trees  and  flowers  were  new  to  me. 

When  the  weather  was  fine  I  usually  walked  during  the 
early  part  of  the  day,  both  for  the  sake  of  relieving  the 
bearers  and  of  observing  the  country  and  its  productions. 
The  road,  however,  had  been  too  wet  and  slippery  to  allow 
me  to  do  so  this  morning,  and  we  reached  Manamboninahi- 
tra,  where  we  halted  for  breakfast,  at  eleven  o'clock,  having 
traveled  about  twelve  miles.  At  noon  we  set  out  again, 
our  route  continuing,  according  to  the  compass,  a  little  to 
the  northward  of  west. 

The  aspect  of  the  country  before  us  was  now  changed. 
Lines  of  hills,  with  occasional  breaks,  stretched  from  north 
to  south  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach.  Few  portions  of 


326  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xi. 

these  lines  rose  to  any  great  elevation  above  the  rest,  and 
no  high  single  mountains  were  seen,  but  each  succeeding 
range  of  hills  or  mountains  increased  in  elevation  as  well  as 
distance,  the  whole  appearing  like  a  series  of  serrated  lines, 
one  extending  above  the  other  from  the  ridge  we  were 
crossing  to  the  last  faint  line  of  mountain-tops  which  mark- 
ed the  far-distant  horizon.  The  valleys  were  generally  filled 
with  luxuriant  vegetation,  and  the  hills  covered  with  grass 
or  crowned  with  forests. 

Since  leaving  the  country  bordering  the  Iharoka,  we  had 
found  the  traveler's-tree  intermingled  with  the  rofia  palm ; 
but  the  former  was  now  most  abundant,  and  from  its  num- 
bers, size,  and  healthy  growth,  imparted,  by  its  own  strik- 
ing and  singular  structure  and  its  masses  of  broad  foliage,  a 
peculiar  character  to  the  landscape.  Sometimes,  for  miles 
together,  it  was  the  chief,  if  not  the  only  species  of  tree  that 
was  seen. 

After  descending  from  the  village  where  we  had  halted, 
we  came  to  a  river  of  the  same  name,  about  forty  yards 
wide,  and  so  deep  that  the  bearers  were  up  to  their  waists, 
and  were  obliged  to  raise  the  poles  of  my  palanquin  from 
their  shoulders  to  the  top  of  their  heads  to  keep  me  above 
the  water,  while  the  relay  of  bearers  walked  in  front  and  by 
the  sides,  shouting  and  beating  the  water  with  branches  and 
poles.  The  river,  they  said,  was  infested  with  crocodiles, 
and  within  a  short  time  before  we  passed  six  persons  had 
been  destroyed  by  them  while  crossing  at  the  same  place. 

Crocodiles  were  said  to  be  in  all  the  rivers  and  lakes  we 
had  passed  since  leaving  the  neighborhood  of  the  sea,  where 
the  water  is  brackish,  and  where  they  are  never  seen.  In 
the  region  over  which  we  had  passed  they  are  about  fifteen 
feet  long,  but  in  other  parts  are  much  larger.  It  is  said 
that  they  may  at  times  be  seen  chasing  the  fish  in  the  lakes, 
and  often  watching  for  prey  among  the  reeds  and  other 
kinds  of  shelter  near  the  margin  of  the  water.  The  croco- 


CHAP.  xi.    SUPERSTITIOUS  FEAR  OF  THE  CROCODILE.        327 

diles  feed  chiefly  on  fish,  but  will  seize  and  devour  bullocks, 
dogs,  or  any  other  animal  quietly  approaching  or  entering 
the  water.     In  some  parts  of  "the  island  they  were  said  to 
be  so  ferocious  as  to  attack  and  upset  canoes,  and  then  prey 
upon  the  hapless  voyagers  they  contained.     The  crocodiles 
deposit  their  eggs  in  the  sand  on  the  shore,  and  prey  upon 
any  animal  they  may  find  on  the  land.    The  late  Mr.  Hastie, 
when  once  sleeping  near  a  river,  was  awoke  by  the  piteous 
whine  of  a  favorite  dog,  which  always  slept  at  the  door  of 
his  tent,  and,  rushing  out,  saw  a  crocodile  dive  into  the  wa- 
ter with  his  poor  dog  in  its  jaws.     The  natives  regard  them 
with  strange  feelings.     They  fear  them  as  possessed  of  su- 
pernatural power,  invoke  their  forbearance  with  prayers,  or 
seek  protection  by  charms,  rather  than  attack  them;  even 
the  shaking  of  a  spear  over  the  waters  would  be  regarded 
as  an  act  of  sacrilegious  insult  to  the  sovereign  of  the  flood, 
imperiling  the  life  of  the  offender  the  next  time  he  should 
venture  on  the  water.    Crocodiles'  teeth  are  worn  as  charms ; 
they  are  also  made  of  silver  or  gold,  and  worn  both  for  se- 
curity and  ornament,  a  golden  crocodile's  tooth  being  the 
central  ornament  in  the  sovereign's  crown.     Yet,  notwith- 
standing this  dread  of  the  crocodile,  the  natives  destroy  the 
young  ones,  and  collect  the  eggs,  which  they  boil  and  dry 
in  the  sun,  and  then  preserve  in  sacks  for  food  or  sale.    The 
eggs  are  large,  being  long  rather  than  oval,  and  are  obtain- 
ed in  great  numbers.     A  missionary  voyaging  along  the 
lakes  we  had  just  left,  at  the  season  when  the  natives  on 
their  shores  were  preserving  the  eggs,  found  that  one  single 
family  had  collected  500  eggs.     The  male  crocodiles  are 
said  to  prey  upon  the  young  ones,  and  great  numbers  of 
their  eggs  are  destroyed  by  serpents  and  certain  kinds  of 
birds;  but,  notwithstanding  these  and  other  restrictions 
upon  their  increase,  their  numbers  are  alarming  and  dan- 
gerous.    The  crocodile  is  described  as  exceedingly  timid, 
fleeing  from  noise  or  the  violent  agitation  of  the  water ; 


328  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xi. 

but,  in  an  extremely  interesting  written  account  which  I 
received  of  the  flight  of  a  party  of  native  Christians  across 
the  northern  part  of  the  island,  I  met,  among  details  of  their 
perils  in  the  wilderness,  with  notices  of  the  crocodile  which 
at  first  appeared  to  me  scarcely  credible.  In  describing  a 
part  of  the  journey  the  writer  observes: 

"We  then  entered  a  thicket  or  wood  of  small  bamboos, 
where  in  many  places  there  was  water  up  to  the  knees,  and 
there  were  many  crocodiles  in  the  water.  We  were  nine 
days  in  that  wood,  and  had  nothing  to  eat  but  clay  and  wa- 
ter. It  was  all  water  or  marshy  ground,  and  we  found  no 
place  to  lie  down  and  sleep  on  except  when  we  came  to  a 
tree  or  a  piece  of  ground  somewhat  raised  and  dry.  We 
frequently  came  upon  crocodiles,  sometimes  trod  upon  them, 
and  when  we  lay  down  at  night  we  smelt  them  (near  us)." 

Three  of  the  fugitives  were  present  when  I  first  read  their 
narrative,  and  on  my  pausing  and  expressing  my  wonder, 
asking  if  they  really  did  tread  on  the  reptiles,  and  inquiring 
how  they  ever  escaped,  they  said  when  the  crocodile  was 
ia  the  water,  or  saw  its  prey  before  it,  it  was  ferocious  and 
irresistible ;  but  when  they  trod  upon  it  in  the  swamp  it 
seemed  greatly  frightened,  and,  instead  of  attacking  them, 
seemed  to  try  to  get  away  or  to  penetrate  deeper  into  the 
mud. 

The  writer  of  the  account  continues :  "  We  did  not  ex- 
pect to  live  or  ever  to  see  men  again,  for  we  thought  we 
should  die  in  that  swamp.  But  after  nine  days  we  came  to 
an  open  country,  and  when  we  had  proceeded  a  short  dis- 
tance we  came  to  a  place  where  there  were  great  numbers 
of  water-lilies  growing.  We  gathered  and  ate  the  leaves  of 
the  lilies,  and  remained  five  days  in  the  place  where  we 
found  this  food.  When  we  went  on  again  we  soon  came 
to  a  broad  river,  where  we  stopped  two  days  and  cut  a  large 
quantity  of  long  coarse  grass,  which  we  tied  in  a  bundle  to 
serve  the  purpose  of  a  raft ;  we  also  made  a  rope  of  long 


CHAP.  xi.  VISIT  TO  THE  HOT  SPRINGS.  329 

grass  with  which  to  draw  the  raft  across  the  river.  Then 
I  swam  with  one  end  of  the  rope  to  the  other  side  of  the 
river.  My  wife  and  a  woman  pushed  the  bundle  of  grass 
into  the  water,  placed  their  bundles  and  the  little  child  on 
the  top  of  the  raft  of  grass,  and  I  pulled  it  across,  while  the 
women  swam  one  on  each  side  of  the  bundle  to  keep  it  up- 
right, and  so  all  reached  the  shore  safely,  though  the  stream 
was  rapid,  and  there  were  numbers  of  crocodiles  in  the 
river." 

But  to  continue  the  narrative  of  my  own  journey.  Soon 
after  leaving  the  river  where  the  natives  of  the  place  had 
warned  us  against  the  crocodiles,  we  crossed  another  river, 
wide,  shallow,  and  clear,  flowing  over  smooth,  rounded 
quartz  pebbles.  Large  blocks  of  quartz  were  here  scattered 
over  the  surface  of  the  country,  which  was  overgrown  with 
tufts  of  a  small  rush,  or  round,  tough,  wiry  grass.  Having 
crossed  as  many  as  eight  rivers  during  the  day,  we  arrived 
in  the  evening  at  the  village  of  Eanomafana — literally  Hot- 
water  —  so  called  on  account  of  some  hot  springs  in  the 
neighborhood.  As  soon  as  my  palanquin  had  been  taken 
into  the  house,  I  set  out  with  my  bearers  to  visit  the  springs. 
After  proceeding  about  half  a  mile  we  crossed  a  river,  and 
on  the  opposite  side  found  the  water  bubbling  up  through 
the  sandy  soil  within  a  few  feet  of  the  stream.  The  ground 
was  strewed  with  shining  particles,  and  the  course  of  the 
water  from  several  crevices  was  marked  with  a  ferruginous 
deposit.  The  water  which  issued  from  the  chasm  was  quite 
hot  to  the  touch,  and  on  placing  the  thermometer,  which 
previously  stood  at  78°  Fahrenheit,  in  the  spring,  it  instant- 
ly rose  to  140°,  the  highest  mark  on  the  instrument,  but  not 
sufficiently  high  to  indicate  the  heat  of  the  water.  Numer- 
ous bubbles  rose  continually  to  the  surface,  but  the  water 
was  tasteless.  The  natives,  in  carrying  me  back  over  the 
river,  stated  that  the  ground  and  the  water  at  the  bottom 
of  the  river,  about  four  feet  deep  on  the  side  next  to  the 


330  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xi. 

springs,  was  quite  hot,  though  the  surface  of  the  water  was 
cool. 

I  had  scarcely  finished  my  evening  meal,  when  a  crowd 
gathered  in  front  of  the  house,  with  native  music  and  sing- 
ing. Before  the  door  a  man  and  a  woman  held  each  one 
end  of  a  bamboo,  about  three  inches  in  diameter  and  six 
feet  long.  On  the  other  side,  five  women  stood  with  sticks 
in  their  hands,  beating  in  concert  a  sort  of  native  tune  on 
the  hollow  bamboo,  and  singing  at  the  same  time  in  loud 
but  monotonous  tones,  which,  I  was  told,  was  for  my  espe- 
cial gratification.  The  noise,  however,  was  so  great,  that  I 
was  glad  to  give  them  a  piece  of  silver  to  retire.  One  of 
my  bearers,  who  had  carried  me  during  the  day  over  nearly 
twenty  miles  of  by  no  means  level  road,  was  dancing  to  the 
music ;  so  that  I  felt  easy  about  his  not  having  been  over- 
tasked with  his  burden.  On  leaving  my  door,  the  musi- 
cians adjourned  to  the  next  house,  where  they  kept  up 
their  performance  till  past  midnight. 

The  next  morning  was  dark,  and  the  rain  again  falling 
heavily ;  we  therefore  remained  here  during  the  day.  Many 
of  the  natives  of  the  place  came  to  the  house,  as  had  been 
their  habit  at  most  of  the  places  where  we  had  halted.  I 
was  struck,  as  I  had  been  at  most  of  the  villages  of  the 
Betanimena,  and  also  the  Betsimasaraka,  with  the  physical 
appearance  of  the  people.  The  men  whom  I  saw  were, 
with  few  exceptions,  well  formed,  stout,  and  active,  rather 
above  the  middle  stature.  The  women  were  short  and 
muscular.  I  scarcely  saw  a  woman  tall  or  thin.  The  men 
were  usually  good-looking,  but  this  could  scarcely  be  said 
of  the  women,  few  of  whom,  judged  by  the  European  stand- 
ard of  beauty,  would  have  been  considered  handsome,  and 
none  of  them  pretty.  I  rarely  saw  an  ill-formed  head,  or 
a  low  or  retreating  forehead.  The  majority  of  the  people 
certainly  presented  well-proportioned,  high,  perpendicular 
foreheads.  So  much  so,  that  I  often  wished  my  photo- 


CHAP.  xi.  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  PEOPLE.  331 

graphic  apparatus  had  been  available  during  the  journey. 
The  foreheads  of  the  women  were  not  inferior  to  those  of 
the  men.  The  head  was  broad,  and  the  face  rather  round 
than  oval.  The  eyebrows  were  well  marked  and  but  slight- 
ly arched.  The  eyes  not  large,  but  often  clear  and  bright. 
The  nose  was  small  at  its  junction  with  the  forehead,  and 
rather  flat  than  otherwise.  The  mouth  was  often  large,  the 
lips  full  and  slightly  projecting ;  the  teeth  white  and  large, 
occasionally  overcrowded,  as  if  too  numerous  to  stand  even. 
The  chin  frequently,  but  not  always,  projecting.  The  top 
of  the  head  was  round  and  full,  the  lower  part  of  the  back 
of  the  head  flat,  and  almost  forming  a  straight  line  from  the 
back  of  the  crown  to  the  neck.  The  hair  was  jet  black, 
crisp,  and  sometimes  curly,  usually  fastened  in  two  or  three 
round  balls  at  the  side  of  the  head,  and  braided  into  a  sort 
of  cue  behind.  When  inclined  to  be  woolly,  it  was  loose- 
ly so.  I  never  saw  the  hair  of  any  Malagasy  so  woolly  as 
that  of  some  of  the  African  tribes,  the  most  remarkable  in- 
stance of  which  to  me  was  that  of  Sechele,  the  tall,  noble- 
looking  chief  of  Kolobeng,  whom  I  saw  at  Cape  Town,  and 
the  covering  of  whose  finely -formed  head  hung  down,  not 
in  ringlets,  but  in  cords  of  the  most  closely-matted  fine 
woolly  hair. 

In  person,  the  Malagasy  appeared  to  be  generally  well 
formed,  with  perhaps  some  little  disproportion  in  the  short- 
ness of  the  neck.  The  chest,  however,  was  well  developed, 
the  trunk  broad,  the  limbs  muscular,  the  gait  firm,  and  the 
complexion  a  rich  warm  brown.  I  scarcely  saw  a  deformed 
person  in  the  country.  The  women  were  generally  covered 
from  the  neck  to  the  ankles ;  but  the  men  at  work  in  the 
fields  often  wore  a  piece  of  cloth  round  their  waists.  Few, 
if  any,  ornaments,  except  a  crocodile's  tooth,  or  beads  on  a 
string  tied  round  the  wrist,  were  worn  by  the  common 
people. 

Soon  after  seven  in  the  morning  we  resumed  our  journey, 


332  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xi. 

our  company  being  now  reduced  to  about  seventy  persons, 
and  the  packages  also  being  diminished  to  twenty-five.  Our 
route  lay  over  a  richly-wooded  fertile  country,  diversified 
by  masses  of  rock,  chiefly  quartz,  sometimes  of  a  beautiful 
pink  color,  and  occasionally  a  species  of  basalt. 

Since  we  had  left  the  lower  country  the  rofia  had  become 
smaller  and  less  frequent,  but  the  traveler's-tree  was  abund- 
ant on  the  sides  of  the  hills  and  in  the  valleys,  and  in  even- 
moist  part  of  the  country,  appearing  at  this  elevation  to  at- 
tain its  greatest  perfection.  This  tree,  Urania  speciosa,  is  al- 
together one  of  the  most  remarkable  that  has  been  discov- 
ered in  Madagascar;  and  the  extent  to  which  it  prevails 
may  be  inferred  from  the  native  name,  ravinala,  by  which 
it  was  designated  by  Sonnerat,  its  discoverer.  Eavinala  is 
literally  leaf  of  the  forest,  as  if  it  was  the  leaf  by  which  the 
forest  was  characterized,  which  is  the  fact  where  it  abounds, 
though  in  many  parts  it  is  not  met  with  at  all.  The  tree 
rises  from  the  ground  with  a  thick  succulent  stem  like  that 
of  the  plantain,  or  the  larger  species  of  strelitzia,  to  both  of 
which  it  bears  a  strong  resemblance.  It  sends  out  from  the 
centre  of  the  stem  long  broad  leaves  like  those  of  the  plan- 
tain, only  less  fragile,  and  rising,  not  round  the  stalk,  but 
in  two  lines  on  opposite  sides,  so  that  as  the  leaves  increase, 
and  the  lower  ones  droop  at  the  end,  or  extend  horizontally, 
the  tree  presents  the  appearance  of  a  large  open  fan.  When 
the  stem  rises  ten  or  twelve  feet  high  the  lower  part  of  the 
outer  covering  becomes  hard  and  dry,  like  the  bark  of  the 
cocoa-nut-tree.  Many  of  the  trees  in  this  region  were  at 
least  thirty  feet  from  the  ground  to  the  lowest  leaves.  I  fre- 
quently counted  from  twenty  to  twenty-four  leaves  on  "a 
single  tree,  the  stalk  of  each  leaf  being  six  or  eight  feet  long, 
and  the  broad  leaf  itself  four  or  six  feet  more. 

The  whole  of  these  twenty-four  bright  green  gigantic 
leaves,  spread  out  like  a  fan  at  the  top  of  a  trunk  thirty 
feet  high,  presented  a  spectacle  as  impressive  as  it  was  to 


TRAVELER'S  TUBE  (URANIA  SPECIOSA),  SHOWING  THE  MODE  OF  OBTAINING  •WATER  FROM  TUB "RBOEPTAOLE  AT  THE 

END  OF  THE  STALKS  OF  THE  LEAVES. 


CHAP.  xi.     DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  TRAVELER'S-TREE.  335 

me  rare  and  beautiful ;  and  in  this  part  of  the  country  they 
were  the  most  conspicuous  objects  for  miles  together,  and 
were  it  not  that  these  vast  bright-green  shining  leaves  are 
slit  on  each  side  by  the  winds,  and  so  flutter  in  smaller  por- 
tions with  the  passing  breeze,  the  prevalence  of  this  tree 
would  impart  a  degree  of  almost  inconceivable  magnificence 
to  the  vegetation  of  the  country. 

In  the  fan-like  head  of  the  traveler's-tree  there  were 
generally  three  or  four  branches  of  seed  pods.  The  parts 
of  fructification  seemed  to  be  inclosed  in  a  tough  firm 
spathe,  like  those  of  the  cocoa-nut ;  but  the  subsequent  de- 
velopment was  more  like  that  of  the  fruit  of  the  plantain. 
When  the  pods,  or  seed  vessels,  of  which  there  were  forty 
or  fifty  on  each  bunch,  were  ripe,  they  burst  open,  and  each 
pod  was  seen  to  inclose  thirty  or  more  seeds,  in  shape  like 
a  small  bean,  but  enveloped  in  a  fine  silky  fibre  of  the  most 
brilliant  blue  or  purple  color.* 

But  this  tree  has  been  most  celebrated  for  containing, 
even  during  the  most  arid  season,  a  large  quantity  of  pure 
fresh  water,  supplying  to  the  traveler  the  place  of  wells  in 
the  desert.  Whenever  I  inquired  of  the  natives  they  al- 
ways affirmed  that  such  was  the  fact,  and  that  so  abundant 
and  pure  was  the  water,  that  when  the  men  were  at  work 
near  the  trees  they  did  not  take  the  trouble  to  go  to  the 
stream  for  water,  but  drew  off  and  drank  the  water  from 
the  tree.  Having  formerly  been  somewhat  skeptical  on 
this  point,  I  determined  to  examine  some  of  the  trees ;  and, 
during  my  journey  this  morning,  we  stopped  near  a  clump 
of  the  trees.  One  of  my  bearers  struck  a  spear  four  or  five 
inches  deep  into  the  thick  firm  end  of  the  stalk  of  the  leaf, 
about  six  inches  above  its  junction  with  the  trunk,  and,  on 
drawing  it  back,  a  stream  of  pure  clear  water  gushed  out, 

*  A  specimen  of  these  beautiful  seeds,  given  to  me  afterward  by  Mr.  Dow- 
land,  at  Mauritius,  is  now  deposited  in  the  museum  of  the  Royal  Gardens 
at  Kew. 


336  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xi. 

about  a  quart  of  which,  we  caught  in  a  pitcher,  and  all 
drank  of  it  on  the  spot.  It  was  cool,  clear,  and  perfectly 
sweet.  On  farther  examination,  I  found  that  there  was  no 
filtration  of  the  water  through  any  part  of  the  plant,  as  I 
had  been  led  to  suppose  when  I  had  seen  water  drawn  by 
Sir  "William  Hooker  from  one  of  the  specimens  in  the  palm 
house  at  Kew.  There  was  a  kind  of  natural  cavity,  or  cis- 
tern, at  the  base  of  the  stalk  of  each  of  the  leaves,  above  its 
union  with  the  stem,  and  the  water  which  had  been  collect- 
ed on  the  broad  and  ribbed  surface  of  the  leaf  had  flowed 
down  a  groove  or  spout  on  the  upper  side  of  the  stalk  into 
this  natural  reservoir,  whence  it  supplied  nutriment  to  the 
tree,  and  refreshment  to  the  traveler  or  the  laborer. 

But  in  Madagascar  this  tree  might,  with  propriety,  be 
called  the  builders-tree  rather  than  the  traveler's-tree.  Its 
leaves  form  the  thatch  of  all  the  houses  on  the  eastern  side 
of  the  island.  The  stems  of  its  leaves  form  the  partitions, 
and  often  sides  of  the  houses ;  and  the  hard  outside  bark  is 
stripped  from  the  inner  and  soft  part,  and,  having  been 
beaten  out  flat,  is  laid  for  flooring ;  and  I  have  seen  the  en- 
tire floor  of  a  long  well-built  house  covered  with  its  bark, 
each  piece  being  at  least  eighteen  inches  wide  and  twenty 
or  thirty  feet  long.  The  leaf,  when  green,  is  used  as  a 
wrapper  for  packages,  and  keeps  out  the  rain.  Large 
quantities  are  also  sold  every  morning  in  the  markets,  as  it 
serves  the  purpose  of  table-cloth,  dishes,  and  plates,  at 
meals;  and,  folded  into  certain  forms,  is  used  instead  of 
spoons  and  drinking- vessels. 

Leaving  the  traveler's-trees,  we  resumed  our  journey, 
crossing  the  water  eight  times  during  our  morning's  march : 
and  ascending  and  descending  as  many  hilly  or  mountain- 
ous ridges,  where  the  path  was  at  times  so  steep  and  slip- 
pery as  greatly  to  impede  our  progress,  and  along  which  it 
seemed  scarcely  possible  that  burdens  should  be  carried.  I 
could  neither  walk  up  nor  down,  without  the  help  of  one 


CHAP.  xi.  MEALS  BY  THE  WAYSIDE.  337 

or  more  of  the  bearers.  About  eleven  we  reached  Amba- 
toharanana,  where  we  halted  for  breakfast.  My  habit  was 
to  take  two  meals  a  day,  but  both  of  the  same  kind  of  food. 
The  first  about  noon,  the  other  in  the  evening.  On  halting 
in  a  village,  one  of  the  bearers  took  a  small  measure  of  rice, 
and  went  among  the  cottages  to  exchange  it  for  a  bundle 
of  fuel,  which  was  sometimes  rather  scarce ;  as  soon  as  this 
is  obtained,  and  a  fire  lighted,  a  quantity  of  rice  was  clean- 
ed, by  being  pounded  in  a  wooden  mortar,  and  afterward 
winnowed  in  a  fan.  It  was  then  put  on  to  boil  in  an  earth- 
en pot,  borrowed  from  some  of  the  inhabitants,  who  after- 
ward shared  its  contents.  While  this  was  cooking,  a  fowl 
was  killed  and  cut  up ;  and  when  the  rice  was  boiled,  the 
fowl  was  fried.  The  tea-kettle  was  in  the  mean  time  placed 
by  the  side  of  the  fire.  In  some  places,  the  device  for  a 
trivet  consisted  of  three  pegs  of  wood,  a  species  of  succu- 
lent wood  so  thoroughly  saturated  with  wet  as  to  burn 
very  slowly.  My  meals  were  served  in  remarkably  primi- 
tive style ;  and  I  sometimes  thought  it  was  well  that  there 
would  be  an  interval  between  my  Malagasy  journey  and 
the  beginning  of  usages  at  home,  or  I  might  be  in  danger 
of  forgetting  some  of  the  proprieties  of  more  civilized  life. 

On  these  occasions  a  mat  was  generally  spread  on  the 
ground.  My  small  canteen,  containing  crockery,  cutlery, 
etc.,  served  for  a  table,  and  was  covered  with  fresh  clean 
leaves  of  the  traveler's-tree.  The  fowl  was  served  in  a  dish, 
and  one  plate  remained.  The  want  of  others  was  supplied 
by  the  broad  green  leaf  on  which  the  manioc,  sweet  potato, 
and  other  vegetables  were  served.  The  tea-pot,  cup,  and 
saucer,  to  prevent  accident,  were  usually  placed  on  the  floor 
by  the  side  of  the  box,  an  egg  beaten  up  in  a  cup  serving 
as  a  substitute  for  milk  with  the  tea.  The  door,  the  only 
avenue  for  light  or  air,  was  always  open,  and  five  or  six 
athletic  men,  who  had  probably  helped  in  the  cooking,  sat 
round  within  the  door.  One  usually  whisked  away  the 

Y 


338  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xi. 

flies  with  a  green  bough,  the  others  discussed  the  news  of 
the  day,  or  perhaps  scared  away  a  hungry  dog  from  the 
door.  When  my  meal  was  over,  the  bearers,  if  they  had 
not  been  able  to  obtain  the  use  of  another  house,  brought 
their  own  rice,  or  whatever  they  might  have,  and  took  their 
meal  in  the  same  house,  where  they  were  sometimes  joined 
by  the  owners. 

The  quantity  of  rice  a  man  would  sometimes  eat  ap- 
peared to  me  enormous.  They  generally  cook  more  at  one 
tune  than  they  use,  and  bake  the  rice  adhering  to  the  sides 
of  the  vessel  in  which  it  is  cooked  until  it  is  brown,  then 
pouring  in  fresh  water,  boil  it  into  a  sort  of  coffee,  which  all 
classes  are  accustomed  to  drink  after  their  meals.  Some- 
tunes  in  addition  to  other  presents  brought  me  by  the  peo- 
ple was  a  small  quantity  of  honey,  generally  clear  and  good. 
It  was  some  satisfaction  to  me  to  see  that,  heavy  as  the 
roads  were,  my  bearers  did  not  become  thinner,  or  look  the 
worse  for  their  journey. 

In  the  afternoon  we  again  resumed  our  journey,  crossing 
the  water  of  the  same  or  different  rivers  five  times,  and 
traveling  for  a  considerable  distance  along  the  steep  bank 
of  the  Farimbongy,  a  broad  and  rapid  stream.  Later  in 
the  afternoon  we  reached  Mahela,  where  we  halted  for  the 
night,  having  traveled  nearly  twenty  miles  over  roads  that 
in  England  would  have  been  deemed  impassable.  Wher- 
ever the  road  was  at  all  level,  the  path  was  through  deep 
clayey  mud.  The  steep  ascents  and  descents,  of  a  hundred 
or  three  hundred  feet  in  extent,  were  sometimes  traversed 
by  a  slanting  path  along  a  narrow,  deep  hollow,  worn  by 
the  water.  At  other  times  the  path  lay  along  a  narrow 
way,  full  of  ridges  and  holes,  pent  up  between  steep  banks 
from  ten  to  twenty  feet  high,  of  red  or  pinkish  clay,*  con- 
taining fragments  of  quartz,  rocks  of  which  also  sometimes 

*  The  country  answers  to  its  name,  Betanimena,  which  signifies  much 
red  earth. 


CHAP.  xi.  NEW  AND  BEAUTIFUL  PLANTS.  339 

overhang  the  path,  which  itself  was  occasionally  so  narrow 
that  I  could  touch  both  sides  at  once. 

When  our  way  led  through  forest  or  wood,  the  large, 
smooth,  slippery  roots  of  the  trees,  forming  a  sort  of  net- 
work along  the  path,  and  having  their  interstices  filled  with 
water,  rendered  traveling  still  more  difficult;  and  while  I 
felt  grateful  that  we  had  passed  without  accident,  I  could 
not  but  admire  the  sure-footedness  and  care  evinced  by 
the  bearers.  Although  where  it  was  practicable  I  always 
walked,  or  rather  scrambled  up  or  down  the  most  difficult 
places,  it  required  at  times,  during  this  part  of  the  journey, 
the  whole  eight  bearers  to  keep  the  palanquin  upright,  and 
to  prevent  the  whole  of  us  from  being  precipitated  down 
the  steep  declivity  before  us,  or  over  the  precipice  on  our 
side. 

I  had  walked  over  two  hollows,  had  ascended  and  de- 
scended two  of  the  highest  ridges  we  had  passed  during  the 
day,  and  had  seen  much  that  was  new  among  the  vegetable 
productions  of  the  country.  There  were,  however,  only 
few  orchids,  but  among  them  was  an  angraecum  new  to  me, 
with  bright  yellow  flowers.  I  obtained  one  or  two  speci- 
mens, which  I  gave  to  a  young  chief,  who  considerately 
offered  to  carry  them  for  me;  but  when  we  reached  the 
end  of  the  journey  I  found  that,  deeming  them  of  no  par- 
ticular value,  he  had  thrown  them  away  on  the  road.  I 
saw  a  number  of  ferns  and  lycopodiums  in  the  hollows,  but 
only  obtained  one  or  two  fronds  of  a  species  somewhat  re- 
sembling Adiantum  trapezif&rme.  I  noticed  some  beautiful 
small  variegated  plants  growing  in  the  damp  places  at  the 
roots  of  the  forest  trees,  bearing  claret-colored  leaves,  veined 
with  gold,  like  those  of  echites,  though  the  plant  was  not 
shrubby. 

As  we  arrived  at  our  halting-place  rather  early,  and  the 
weather  was  fair,  I  could  not  refrain  from  going  into  the 
adjacent  dells  in  search  of  plants.  A  species  of  justicia 


340  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  XL 

covered  much  of  the  ground,  which  greatly  resembled  one 
of  the  kinds  cultivated  in  England,  though  the  flower  was 
scarcely  so  good.  The  only  rarities  I  met  with  were  a  new 
lycopodium,  somewhat  resembling  L.  umbrosum,  but  larger, 
and  a  pretty  creeping  fern. 

In  passing  over  a  part  of  the  country  where  the  gigantic 
heath  was  abundant,  I  observed  before  me  a  large  heap,  as 
much  as  one  or  two  cart-loads,  of  withered  branches  lying 
in  the  middle  of  the  way,  and  I  noticed  that  each  of  the 
bearers,  as  he  approached  the  place,  plucked  a  large  branch, 
or  pulled  up  a  plant  of  the  heath,  and  uttering,  apparently 
in  a  laughing  manner,  a  few  words,  cast  the  branches  on 
the  pile  as  he  passed  by.  A  number  of  bamboos  were  fixed 
in  the  ground  round  about,  to  which  shreds  or  pieces  of 
foreign  cloth  were  attached.  On  inquiring  what  the  heap 
was,  I  was  told  it  was  the  accumulated  offerings  of  travelers, 
and  that  my  men  had  thrown  their  own  pieces  on  the  heap 
to  insure  a  safe  journey  to  the  party.  In  other  parts  of  the 
journey  I  passed  spots  regarded  with  superstitious  feelings 
by  the  natives,  and  where  I  was  told  offerings  were  occa- 
sionally presented. 

There  is  generally  a  wide  open  space  in  the  centre  of 
every  village  of  any  size ;  and  in  the  space  in  front  of  my 
house  here  there  were  several  pieces  of  wood  about  eight 
or  nine  feet  high,  cut  smooth  and  square  at  the  base,  but 
spreading  into  two  or  three  branches  at  about  five  feet  from 
the  ground,  and  gradually  tapering  to  a  point.  These,  I 
was  told,  were  objects  of  worship — in  fact,  the  idols  of  the 
village.  They  seemed  to  have  been  shaped  and  smoothed 
with  care,  but  were  now  in  a  state  of  decay.  In  the  same 
place  was  a  large  basaltic  stone  of  a  prismatic  form  standing 
five  feet  out  of  the  ground,  and  near  it  a  smooth  round 
stone  of  the  same  substance,  and  about  the  size  of  a  man's 
head.  My  informant,  alluding  to  the  language  of  the 
prophet  about  praying  to  the  rock,  told  me  that  prayers, 


CHAP.  XI. 


OBJECTS  OF  WORSHIP. 


341 


at  certain  times,  were  offered  to  the  tall  stone,  and  blood 
sprinkled  and  fat  burned  upon  the  other.  I  had  observed 
similar  stones,  sometimes  inclosed  by  a  wooden  fence,  in 
more  than  one  of  the  villages  at  which  we  had  halted,  but 
knowing  that  the  adherents  to  the  superstitions  of  the  coun- 
try were  exceedingly  sensitive  on  the  subject,  and  averse  to 
all  inquiry  or  questioning,  especially  by  foreigners,  as  well  as 
jealous  of  any  thing  that  might  weaken  the  influence  of 
their  imagined  objects  of  fear  and  worship  upon  the  minds 
of  the  natives,  I  had  generally  abstained  from  all  remarks 
on  the  subject  to  the  people  around. 


342  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xii. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

Beauty  of  the  Mountain  Scenery. — Mode  of  catching  a  Bullock. — Charms 
against  evil  Dreams. — Tomb  of  a  Chief. — Weeping-place  of  the  Hovas. 
— Beautiful  Forms  of  Growth  of  the  Bamboo. — Wild  Cattle  and  wild 
Boars. — Former  Hunting-excursions  in  Madagascar. — Frightful  Roads. 
— The  great  Forest  of  Alamazaotra. — Magnitude  of  the  Trees,  Beauty  of 
the  Flowers,  and  Rarity  of  the  Ferns. — The  Ferry  of  Mangoro. — Milita- 
ry Salute. — Friends  from  the  Capital. — Breakfast  with  a  Hova  Family. — 
Prince  Ramonja's  Village. — Salutation  of  his  aged  Nurse. — Presents  from 
his  Tenantry. — Extent  and  Beauty  of  the  Valley  of  Angavo. — The  Mount- 
ain Pass  and  Fortress. — Village  Market. — Locusts  caught  and  preserved 
for  Food. — Houses  of  Ankova. — First  Night  in  a  Hova  Village. — Depre- 
dations of  the  Rats  and  Mice. — The  feudal-looking  Village  of  Ambato- 
manga. — Accommodations  and  Lodging. — Friends  from  vthe  Capital. — 
Tombs  of  the  Hovas. — Interior  of  the  House  at  Amboipo. — Native  Silk- 
weaving. 

• 

ON  the  morning  of  the  15th  of  August  we  were  stirring 
by  daylight,  and,  in  descending  from  the  village  of  Mahela, 
crossed  the  Farimbongy,  a  river  between  twenty  and  thirty 
yards  wide,  and  along  the  banks  of  which  we  had  traveled 
on  the  previous  day.  Ascending  the  hill  on  the  opposite 
side,  we  pursued  our  way  along  the  ridges  of  the  hills.  I 
walked  up  a  steep  ascent,  and  was  tempted  to  prolong  my 
walk  for  a  mile  or  two.  From  the  summit  of  one  of  the 
ridges  that  we  crossed  I  obtained  a  view  of  the  sea  off 
Tamatave,  and  stretching  away  to  the  southward  of  Hivon- 
dro.  The  well-defined  line  of  the  distant  horizon  which 
the  ocean  formed  was  very  distinct  as  seen  above  the  tops 
of  the  intervening  ranges  of  mountains  which  we  had  cross- 
ed ;  and  the  elevation  of  our  present  route  must  have  been 
considerable,  as  we  must  have  been  nearly  a  hundred  miles 
from  the  sea. 


CHAP.  xii.          MODE  OF  CATCHING  A  BULLOCK.  343 

The  morning  was  clear,  and  the  prospect  wide  and  beau- 
tiful. In  some  directions  were  seen  the  hollows  of  the  near- 
est valleys,  with  their  grass  or  thatched  houses,  composing 
their  straggling  villages,  having  the  gardens  and  rice-grounds 
of  the  natives  around  them.  Beyond  these  the  marshes  or 
swamps  appeared  in  several  places,  together  with  cattle 
feeding  on  the  higher  ground ;  the  sides  of  the  hills  were 
clothed  with  wood,  and  the  tops  of  the  mountains  appar- 
ently composed  of  masses  of  granite.  In  other  directions  a 
dense  white  cloud  or  vapor  stretched  across  the  valleys, 
concealing  all  they  contained,  and  only  leaving  visible  the 
summits  of  the  loftier  mountains.  Vegetation  was  still 
abundant,  though  not  so  luxuriant  as  in  the  region  over 
which  we  had  traveled.  The  soil,  as  seen  on  the  banks  of 
the  rivers,  or  by  the  steep  and  freshly -broken  sides  of  the 
ravines,  was  of  yellow  or  pink  clay,  with  fragments  of 
quartz  intermingled  to  a  great  depth. 

About  nine  o'clock  we  reached  Ampasimbe,  one  of  the 
government  post-stations.  Before  I  had  finished  my  break- 
fast a  good  fat  bullock  was  driven  near  the  door.  A  chief 
came,  and,  pointing  to  the  animal,  told  me  it  was  a  present 
which  he  had  been  directed  to  make  to  me,  from  Kainibe- 
hevitra,  the  chief  at  Tamatave ;  I  gratefully  acknowledged 
the  present,  and  then  told  Izaro  to  have  it  slaughtered  for 
the  men.  Off  the  men  went  without  needing  another  word, 
surrounded  the  animal,  and,  after  chasing  and  dodging  for 
some  time,  with  one  or  two  ineffectual  attempts  to  hold  it 
by  the  horns  and  the  tail,  a  number  of  them  seized  and 
threw  it  down  by  main  force,  and  then,  fastening  ropes  to 
its  horns  and  legs,  led  it  to  the  place  of  slaughter.  It  was 
soon  killed  and  cut  up,  each  portion  being  distributed  with 
the  skin  on;  for,  excepting  at  Tamatave,  where  the  skin 
sells  for  a  dollar  in  the  market,  they  never  think  of  skin- 
ning their  bullocks,  and  frequently  cook  their  beef  with  the 
skin  on  it.  Pieces  of  skin  cut  up,  mixed  with  fat,  and  boil- 


344  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xii. 

ed  till  it  forms  a  kind  of  jelly,  is  said  to  be  a  favorite  dish. 
A  piece  of  the  ribs  with  the  skin  on  was  brought  as  my 
share.  It  is  astonishing  what  excitement  the  killing  of  a 
bullock  produces.  The  men  are  as  busy  as  bees,  and  on 
each  of  these  joyful  occasions  I  had  reason  to  expect  that 
nothing  but  cooking  would  be  done  for  the  rest  of  the  day. 
While  resting  here  one  of  the  chiefs  cautioned  me  against 
walking  so  much,  especially  in  the  woods,  as  the  fatigue  of 
walking,  added  to  the  damp  of  the  forest,  would  be  very 
likely  to  produce  fever. 

When  the  bearers  gathered  round  my  door  on  the  fol- 
lowing morning,  I  noticed  that  a  number  of  them  had  spots 
of  white  clay,  like  paint,  upon  the  cheek  or  forehe'ad,  and 
under  the  ear,  and  one  or  two  had  a  white  circle  round  the 
eye.  I  had  noticed  the  same  once  or  twice  before  upon  the 
face  of  one  of  the  chiefs,  as  well  as  others  of  our  party ;  and, 
on  inquiring  the  cause,  I  was  told  that  the  mark  round  the 
eye  was  a  medicinal  application,  but  that  the  others  were 
put  on  as  a  sort  of  charm,  to  avert  the  evil  apprehended 
after  the  unpleasant  dreams  of  the  past  night.  I  could  not 
help  thinking  that  the  quantity  of  beef  they  had  eaten,  after 
the  slaughtering  of  the  ox  on  the  previous  day,  had  proba- 
bly more  to  do  with  their  dreams  than  either  witchcraft  or 
evil  spirits. 

On  leaving  the  village,  we  ascended  and  kept  chiefly  along 
the  lateral  hills  which  extend  from  the  sides  of  the  high 
mountain  ranges  running  north  and  south  along  this  part 
of  the  island. 

Near  one  of  the  villages  we  passed  the  newly-made  grave 
of  a  Hova  chief.  It  consisted  of  a  space  thirty  feet  square, 
inclosed  by  stone  walls  four  or  five  feet  high.  The  inside 
was  filled  with  earth  to  the  level  of  the  top  of  the  walls,  and 
had  a  small  stone  structure  standing  in  the  centre.  The 
grave  stood  upon  the  summit  of  a  circular  hill  overlooking 
the  village,  and  surrounded  by  an  amphitheatre  of  wooded 


CHAP.  xii.     THE  WEEPING-PLACE  OF  THE  HOVAS.  345 

mountains.  There  was  something  peculiarly  affecting  to 
me  in  the  solitude  and  loveliness  of  the  spot  which  the  chief^ 
probably  the  proprietor  of  the  village  below,  had  selected 
for  his  last  resting-place.  The  Hova  chiefs  manifest  consid- 
erable solicitude  about  their  graves;  and  I  was  told  that 
one  of  the  chief  officers  who  died  lately  at  the  capital  re- 
quested of  his  sons,  shortly  before  his  death,  that  after  his 
interment  they  would  occasionally  remove  the  large  stone 
slab  that  would  form  the  door  of  his  sepulchre,  and  let  the 
sun  shine  in  upon  him. 

During  the  morning  I  walked  a  considerable  distance, 
though  the  ground  was  wet,  and  much  of  our  way  through 
the  forest  which  covered  the  summit  of  the  hill.  Once  or 
twice  in  the  intervals  of  open  country,  when  the  horizon  was 
clear,  we  again  obtained  a  view  of  the  distant  ocean.  The 
view  from  one  of  these  summits  was  extensive,  varied,  and 
exceedingly  beautiful,  but,  at  the  same  time,  deeply  affect- 
ing, from  the  mournful  associations  with  the  past  with  which 
it  was  connected.  To  the  west,  or  before  us  as  we  were  as- 
cending, were  the  lofty  wooded  ridges  which  we  yet  had  to 
climb,  and  beyond  the  summits  of  these  mountains  the  bor- 
ders of  Imerina.  To  the  east  was  the  wooded  and  partly- 
cultivated  valley  immediately  below  us ;  and  stretching  to 
the  north  and  the  south,  and  on  the  opposite  sides  of  this 
valley,  the  descending  ridges  of  the  mountain  ranges  over 
which  we  had  passed,  diversified  with  rock,  and  herbage, 
and  forest;  while  beyond  these,  in  the  far  distance,  swept 
the  dim,  dark,  but  yet  well-defined  line  of  the  wide  waters 
of  the  ocean.  This  spot,  surrounded  as  it  is  by  scenes  of 
vastness,  grandeur,  and  beauty,  is  called  "  The  Weeping- 
place  of  the  Hovas;"  a  name  of  just  and  mournful  import, 
connected  with  the  miseries  of  the  slave-trade,  which,  by 
virtue  of  a  treaty  between  this  country  and  England  was 
abolished  in  the  year  1817.  It  has  been  calculated  that, 
previous  to  this  period,  between  three  and  four  thousand 


346  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xn. 

unhappy  beings  were  exported  annually  as  slaves.  Great 
numbers  of  these  came  from  the  capital,  where  they  were  col- 
lected from  more  remote  provinces,  and  sold  to  factors  or 
dealers,  who  resorted  thither  for  the  purpose  of  purchasing 
and  conducting  them  to  the  coast.  It  was  at  this  place  that 
the  manacled  and  goaded  slave,  forced  from  home  and  coun- 
try and  all  that  makes  life  dear,  obtained  his  first  view  of  the 
sea,  across  which  he  was  to  be  carried  to  a  land  of  unknown 
hardships,  misery,  and  death;  and,  when  he  reached  this 
spot,  his  eye  had  rested  also,  for  the  last  time,  on  the  lofty 
summits  of  the  mountains  of  his  beloved  Imerina.  We  do 
not  wonder  at  such  a  spot  being  called  "  The  Weeping-place 
of  the  Hovas."  The  treaty  for  the  abolition  of  the  trade  in 
slaves,  formed  in  1817,  was  faithfully  observed  by  Radama, 
who  even  put  some  of  his  own  relatives  to  death  for  not  re- 
garding it ;  but  it  was  violated  during  the  absence  of  Sir  R. 
Farquhar  on  a  visit  to  England,  by  General  Hall,  who  was 
acting-governor  of  Mauritius  at  the  time,  and  restored  the 
traffic  in  slaves.  In  1820,  when  the  British  agent,  who  was 
sent  to  renew  the  treaty,  and  the  missionary  were  on  their 
way  to  the  capital,  and  just  on  the  outskirts  of  the  great 
forest  before  us,  they  met  about  a  thousand  slaves  going 
from  Imerina  to  the  coast,  each  one  chained  by  a  ring  of 
heavy  iron  round  the  wrist,  and  bearing  a  heavy  burden. 

As  we  continued  our  journey,  the  vegetation  of  the  coun- 
try around  us  became  entirely  changed.  The  rofia  palm 
was  no  longer  seen.  The  traveler's-tree  was  stunted  and 
scarce ;  but  the  base  of  the  hills  and  the  valleys  were  cov- 
ered with  the  bamboo,  which  was  far  more  abundant  than 
during  any  former  par\;  of  the  journey.  There  were  at 
least  four  distinct  varieties :  one  a  large-growing  kind,  erect 
nearly  to  the  point ;  a  second  smaller,  seldom  rising  much 
above  twenty  feet  in  height,  bushy  at  the  base,  and  grace- 
fully bending  down  its  tapering  point.  A  third  kind  rose 
in  single  cane,  almost  without  a  leaf,  to  the  height  of  thirty 


CHAP.  xn.  BEAUTY  OF  THE  BAMBOO.  347 

feet  or  more ;  or,  bending  over,  formed  a  perfectly  circular 
arch.  I  also  saw  a  bamboo  growing  as  a  creeper,  with 
small  short  joints  feathered  with  slender  leafy  branches  at 
every  joint,  and  stretching  in  festoons  from  tree  to  tree 
along  the  side  of  the  road,  or  hanging  suspended  in  single 
lines  from  a  projecting  branch,  and  swinging  gently  with 
the  passing  breeze.  The  appearance  of  the  bamboo  when 
growing  is  exceedingly  graceful.  Sometimes  the  canes,  as 
thick  as  a  man's  arm  at  the  base,  rise  forty  or  fifty  feet  high, 
fringed  at  the  joints,  which  are  two  or  three  feet  apart,  with 
short  branches  of  long  lance-shaped  leaves.  The  smaller 
kinds,  which  abound  most  in  this  region,  are  still  more  ele- 
gant ;  and  the  waving  of  the  canes,  with  their  attenuated 
but  feathery-looking  points,  bending  down  like  a  plume,  and 
the  tremulous  quivering,  even  in  the  slightest  breeze,  of  their 
long  slender  leaves,  present  ever-varying  aspects  of  beauty ; 
and,  combined  with  the  bright  green  color  of  the  bamboo 
cane  and  leaf,  impart  an  indescribable  charm  to  the  entire 
landscape. 

I  had  seen  in  South  Africa  patches  of  bamboo  which  were 
said  to  yield  considerable  profit  to  their  owners,  by  furnish- 
ing handles  for  the  whips  with  which  the  African  wagon- 
driver  keeps  his  long  team  of  oxen  in  order.  But  handles 
for  the  whips  of  all  the  wagon-drivers  upon  earth,  and  rods 
for  all  the  anglers  in  the  world,  might  be  taken  from  the  re- 
gions through  which  we  were  passing  without  being  missed. 
The  fences  in  this  part  of  the  country  are  formed  with  the 
bamboo,  and  the  walls,  and  even  the  floors,  of  the  generality 
of  houses  are  of  the  same  material.  The  roofs  of  these 
houses  are  covered  with  grass. 

Our  road  was  now  steep,  rugged,  slippery,  and  more  diffi- 
cult than  any  we  had  before  passed  over,  and  it  was  noon 
before  we  reached  Marozivongy,  a  small  village  situated  in 
a  hollow,  where  we  halted  for  breakfast.  The  people  were 
hospitable.  The  mistress  of  the  house  at  which  we  stopped 


348  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xn. 

presented  me  with  a  bunch  of  native  bananas,  remarkably 
fine  fruit.  Each  banana  was  nearly  eighteen  inches  long,  and 
curled  like  a  bullock's  horn.  The  only  cooking-place  was 
the  house  in  which  I  sat.  The  fuel  was  wet,  and  the  grass 
roof  not  admitting  the  escape  of  the  smoke,  the  atmosphere 
proved  exceedingly  painful  to  my  eyes.  I  tried  to  stand 
out  of  doors  when  it  did  not  rain,  but  there  was  only  a  yard 
or  two  that  was  not  some  inches  deep  in  water  and  clay, 
worked  up  into  stiff  mud  by  the  passing  to  and  fro  of  the 
people  and  the  cattle.  The  inhabitants  of  the  villages  do 
not  seem  to  have  advanced  in  civilization  so  far  as  drainage ; 
and  from  the  state  of  the  villages  themselves,  as  well  as  the 
swampy  wet  grounds  around,  they  seemed  as  unhealthy 
places  as  it  was  possible  to  imagine. 

After  a  couple  of  hours'  rest,  and  many  expressions  of 
kindness  from  the  people,  we  resumed  our  journey.  Great 
part  of  the  way  was  through  a  thick  forest,  over  steep  and 
slippery  paths  and  through  narrow  passes,  along  which  it 
seemed  impossible  to  carry  a  palanquin ;  while  the  heavy 
rain  which  fell  during  great  part  of  the  time,  rendered  our 
progress  still  more  difficult.  During  this  afternoon's  jour- 
ney we  crossed  four  rivers  swollen  with  the  rain ;  and  about 
five  o'clock  reached  Beforana,  a  tolerably  large  village,  sit- 
uated in  a  swampy  hollow,  surrounded  by  woody  hills. 
My  quarters  were  not  uncomfortable,  but  I  felt  shivery  and 
cold.  The  chiefs  brought  in  the  customary  present,  and 
shortly  afterward  the  owner  of  the  house  came,  accompa- 
nied by  his  wife  and  children,  bringing  a  small  basket  of 
very  white  rice,  with  a  duck  and  a  fowl,  as  a  present  He 
said  that  Messrs.  Johns,  and  others,  had  always  stopped  at 
his  house  when  traveling  to  and  from  the  capital ;  that  he 
was  glad  to  see  me  there,  and  had  brought  the  small  pres- 
ent as  a  token  of  his  good- will.  I  thanked  the  kind  family 
for  their  present,  and  expressed  my  deep  sense  of  the  hos- 
pitality manifested  in  every  place.  After  they  had  retired, 


CHAP.  xii.  WILD  HOGS.  349 

I  found  my  bearers  somewhat  fatigued  and  wishing  to  halt 
here  for  a  day  before  penetrating  the  great  forest ;  and 
though  I  was  anxious  to  get  beyond  the  region  of  fever  as 
soon  as  possible,  yet,  as  the  next  day  was  Sunday,  I  was 
glad  to  arrange  that  it  should  be  a  day  of  rest. 

Although  my  palanquin  had  been  placed  near  the  fire  at 
which  my  supper  was  cooked,  it  was  not  dry  when  I  re- 
tired to  rest.  I  did  not,  however,  apprehend  any  incon- 
venience, as  it  had  before  been  hung  up  while  wet ;  but  I 
awoke  in  the  night  in  a  state  of  great  heat  and  pain,  in  con- 
sequence of  which  I  kept  closely  in  the  house  during  the 
whole  of  the  following  day. 

The  morning  of  Monday  was  fine,  and,  being  anxious  to 
proceed,  we  started  early.  While  the  bearers  were  prepar- 
ing the  packages,  my  attention  was  attracted  by  a  number 
of  men  with  spears,  who  were  chasing  a  large  black  hog 
past  the  village ;  and  on  inquiry  I  was  informed  that  it  was 
a  stray  hog,  probably  from  the  adjacent  woods.  In  some 
of  the  villages,  and  even  districts,  hogs  are  prohibited  by 
the  government,  at  the  instance  of  the  diviners  or  idol- 
keepers,  who  assert  that  these  and  other  animals  are  pecul- 
iarly obnoxious  to  the  idols,  which  are  to  some  extent  re- 
garded as  the  tutelary  divinities  of  the  place.  Whether  it 
was  on  this  account  or  merely  for  the  sport  I  did  not  ascer- 
tain, but  the  appearance  of  the  animal  produced  great  ex- 
citement in  the  village. 

Wild  boars  exist  in  considerable  numbers  in  the  forests. 
According  to  the  descriptions  of  them  given  by  the  natives 
they  are  different  animals  from  the  domesticated  hog,  and 
are  called  by  a  different  name ;  kisoa  being  the  name  of  the 
hog,  but  the  wild  boar  is  called  lambo.  They  are  said  to 
have  tusks  or  horns  growing  under  the  eyes,  probably  the 
callous  protuberances  of  the  Sus  larvatus  of  Cuvier,  which 
inhabits  parts  of  the  adjacent  continent  of  Africa.  It  would 
seem  as  if  the  wild  boar  had  at  former  periods  existed  in 


350  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xu. 

considerable  numbers,  and  in  all  parts  of  the  island,  as  one 
of  the  few  names  by  which  the  natives  designate  their 
whole  country  is  Nesindambo,  literally,  island  of  wild  boars. 
They  are  often  chased  and  killed  by  the  natives.  Part  of  a 
wild  boar  had  not  been  an  unfrequent  dish  at  the  tables  of 
the  foreign  resident  of  Tamatave  at  whose  hospitable  board 
I  was  a  guest  during  much  of  the  time  that  I  resided  there. 
The  hunting  of  the  wild  boar,  as  well  as  of  the  wild  cattle 
which  roam  in  large  herds  over  the  uninhabited  parts  of 
the  country,  seems  to  have  been  a  favorite  pursuit  with  the 
Nimrods  of  Madagascar  from  very  early  times.  The  croc- 
odile is  reported  to  have  been  the  game  of  the  Vazimba,  or 
earliest  inhabitants  of  the  country.  At  the  time  when  Dru- 
ry  resided  on  the  island,  viz.,  150  years  ago,  hunting  the 
wild  cattle  and  wild  boars  was  the  occasional  occupation 
and  amusement  of  the  daring  and  adventurous  chiefs  of 
that  part  of  the  island  in  which  he  resided,  and,  as  the  spear 
was  the  weapon  chiefly  employed,  the  sport  was  far  more 
exciting  and  perilous  than  it  has  been  of  later  times,  the 
mere  act  of  slaughtering  the  animals  being  the  least  excit- 
ing part  of  the  sport. 

The  late  King  Eadama  occasionally  hunted  the  wild  cat- 
tle and  other  animals;  but  his  hunting  expeditions  were 
more  like  organized  military  invasions  of  the  territories  of 
these  denizens  of  the  desert  than  ordinary  pursuits  of  the 
chase,  and  the  numbers  killed  would  seem  to  have  surpass- 
ed even  the  murderous  battues  of  the  German  sportsmen. 
Radama  sometimes  led  two  or  three  thousand  troops  to  the 
chase,  and,  as  a  portion  of  these  carried  fire-arms,  the  slaugh- 
ter was  immense.  In  an  account  which  I  obtained  during 
my  visit  of  one  of  these  hunting  expeditions  to  a  region 
about  a  hundred  miles  or  more  to  the  west  of  the  capital, 
in  the  autumn  of  1825,  the  writer,  a  native,  states:  "And 
these  are  the  animals  we  obtained  in  the  end  of  September 
and  beginning  of  October : 


CHAP.  xii.  ABUNDANCE  OF  WILD  GAME.  351 

Wild  cattle 3063 

Wildfowl 2235 

Wild  boars 63 

Large  amphibious  turtle 326 

Large  baskets  of  fish 5 

Eels 183 

Burrowing  tenrecs 11 

Tenrecs  that  do  not  burrow 7 

Lemurs  or  monkeys 43 

Crocodiles 13 

We  were  only  ten  days  hunting  the  wild  oxen,  and  when 
the  flesh  (of  the  oxen)  was  finished  we  hunted  the  wild 
boars  two  days  only.  The  wild  fowl  we  took  all  in  one 
clay.  We  did  not  shoot  the  fowls,  but  obtained  them  by 
catching  them  and  striking  them  only.  The  wild  cattle 
and  the  wild  boars  were  killed  by  the  soldiers,  and  the 
birds  were  caught  by  them.  The  crocodiles  and  the  others, 
viz.,  the  fish,  the  turtles,  the  monkeys,  and  the  hedgehogs, 
were  caught  by  the  people,  farmers,  or  villagers."  Such  is 
the  account,  written  from  the  field,  which  one  of  the  hunts- 
men gives  as  the  result  of  thirteen  days'  sport. 

The  immense  number  of  wild  cattle  slaughtered  in  ten 
days,  and  of  wild  boars  killed  in  two  days,  together  with 
the  number  of  birds  taken  in  a  single  day,  show  that  the 
game  must  have  been  exceedingly  abundant.  There  does 
not  appear  to  have  been  any  hunting  expeditions  for  a 
number  of  years  past.  The  chief  pursuits  of  the  kind  ap- 
pear to  have  been  for  the  destruction  of  the  wild  hogs.  The 
only  sport  in  which  the  court  takes  part  at  the  present  time 
is  that  of  bull-fights  at  the  capital. 

But,  leaving  the  natives  to  follow  the  large  hog  which 
had  just  approached  the  outskirts  of  their  village,  we  con- 
tinued our  way,  the  sun  shining  brightly  as  we  mounted 
the  high  ground  to  the  east  of  the  village.  After  crossing 
a  river  we  traveled  on  through  the  forest  for  about  four 
hours,  when  we  descended  to  Irihitra,  a  small  wood-cutter's 


352  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CIIAP.  xii. 

station  consisting  of  four  or  five  houses.  Here  we  halted 
for  breakfast,  and  then  continued  our  journey  through  a 
dense  forest  of  large  and  ancient  trees,  enlivened  occasion- 
ally by  tree  ferns  or  the  graceful  areca  palms. 

The  road  here  was  frightful — the  soil  stiff  clay,  with  deep 
holes  of  mud  and  water.  Our  way  was  sometimes  covered 
with  water,  but  more  frequently  up  and  down  steep  slippery 
ravines,  requiring  detours  on  account  of  the  gigantic  trees 
which  had  fallen  across  the  track.  The  clayey  sides  and 
rocky  portions  of  the  ravines  were  sometimes  so  steep  that 
my  position  was  almost  upright,  and  it  frequently  required 
ten  or  twelve  men  to  get  the  palanquin  up  and  down.  I 
was  not  well  enough  to  walk,  but  I  frequently  requested 
the  bearers  to  halt  and  rest,  which  they  did  once  or  twice, 
when  I  got  out,  and  they  sat  down  in  a  comparatively  level 
spot  for  about  ten  minutes.  I  certainly  felt,  while  the  men 
were  toiling  up  the  rugged  ascent,  that  there  was  some 
ground  for  the  late  Radama's  remark,  that  he  had  two 
generals,  viz.,  General  Hazo,  forest,  and  General  Tazo,  fever, 
in  whose  hands  he  would  leave  any  invading  army — for  an 
army  could  make  but  slow  way  through  such  a  country  as 
this.  I  could  also  readily  imagine  why,  in  1816,  some  of 
Captain  Le  Sage's  men  should  have  thrown  themselves  on 
the  ground,  declaring  they  would  die  rather  than  attempt 
to  proceed  farther.  It  would  require  more  than  a  lifetime 
to  make  even  a  passable  road  through  this  region.  I  after- 
ward made  a  rough  sketch  of  the  road,  and  photographed 
the  palanquin  and  bearers. 

We  were  yet  in  the  forest  when  the  sun  went  down,  but 
we  still  kept  on  walking  along  the  course  of  a  stream. 
Gleaming  lights  at  length  indicated  our  approach  to  the 
sleeping-place,  and,  in  answer  to  the  shouts  of  our  men, 
torches  of  bamboo-cane  were  soon  afterward  brought  to 
show  us  the  way  out  of  the  river  and  along  the  path  to  the 
houses.  I  entered  the  house  appropriated  to  our  use  about 


THF.   TBAVBLEE8  PASSING   THBOUCiU   THE  GREAT   FOBF.ST  OP   ALAMAZAOTEA. 


CHAP.  xii.  FOREST  OF  ALAMAZAOTKA.  355 

seven  in  the  evening,  having  been,  with  the  exception  of 
two  hours  occupied  by  our  breakfast,  on  the  shoulders  of 
my  bearers  ever  since  seven  in  the  morning ;  and,  had  they 
not  been  both  skillful  and  strong,  we  could  not  have  reached 
this  place  on  that  night.  One  of  the  chiefs  said  if  I  had  any 
spirituous  liquors  with  me  it  would  be  well  to  give  some  to 
each  of  the  bearers ;  and,  as  my  canteen  contained  a  bottle 
of  brandy,  which  I  found  no  occasion  to  use  myself,  I  felt 
no  hesitation  in  giving  a  glass  to  each  of  the  men. 

This  place  is  a  post-station  for  relays  of  messengers  for 
the  government,  as  well  as  a  wood-cutter's  village ;  and  the 
chief,  a  tall  Hova  officer,  soon  brought  a  present  of  rice, 
sweet  potatoes,  and  poultry,  with  a  large  supply  of  dry  fuel. 
I  acknowledged  his  kindness,  and  assured  him  that  to  give 
so  hospitable  a  welcome  in  such  a  place  and  at  such  an  hour 
was  indeed  treating  me  like  a  friend.  The  chief  part  of  the 
poultry,  together  with  the  rice  and  potatoes,  were  given  to 
the  men,  who  soon  cooked  their  supper  and  stretched  them- 
selves on  their  mats.  I  was  glad  to  sit  by  the  bright  blaz- 
ing fire  while  my  own  supper  was  prepared,  and  afterward 
to  write  up  my  journal  for  the  day  in  the  same  comfortable 
place,  for  the  nights  had  now  become  quite  cool. 

Fatigued  as  I  was,  my  mind  was  greatly  excited  by  the 
scenes  through  which  we  had  passed  during  the  day.  Ala- 
mazaotra  is  one  of  the  great  forests  of  the  island,  or  rather 
part  of  the  belt  of  forest  which,  at  nearly  the  same  eleva- 
tion, is  said  to  extend  through  the  chief  provinces  of  Mada- 
gascar. It  is  said  to  be  forty  miles  through ;  but  I  did  not 
think  we  had  traveled  more  than  twenty-five  miles  during 
this  day.  The  forest  appears  to  spread  over  the  most  une- 
'qual  ground,  covering  mountain  ridges,  steep  precipices,  and 
broad  or  narrow  valleys.  Many  of  the  trees  are  of  stupen- 
dous magnitude,  apparently  of  hard  wood  and  slow  growth, 
excepting  some  of  the  dombeyas,  which  were  magnificent 
trees.  I  noticed  but  few  orchids,  or  parasitical  plants  of  any 


356  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xn. 

kind,  but  creepers  were  abundant — among  them  some  sin- 
gularly curious  bamboos.  Of  one  kind  the  cane  was  almost 
as  small  as  a  quill,  with  a  circle  of  fine  small  branches  or 
leaves  around  every  joint,  the  joints  being  not  more  than 
five  or  six  inches  apart.  The  long  slender  canes  were  often 
nine  or  ten  feet  long,  hanging  pendent  from  the  branches 
of  the  trees,  or  stretching  in  grateful  curves  from  tree  to  tree 
along  the  sides  of  the  road.  I  saw  numbers  of  a  species  of 
medinilla,  and  a  flower  very  much  like  a  Lophospermum 
scandens,  but  growing  on  a  shrubby  plant.  There  were  also 
some  pretty  purple-flowered  orchises,  and  a  few  lycopodi- 
ums ;  but  it  was  the  very  Eden  of  ferns. 

Tree  ferns  here  exhibit  great  variety  of  form  and  foliage, 
and  some  of  these  truly  magnificent  plants  were  visible  in 
every  part  of  the  forest ;  while,  among  the  dwarf  species, 
new  ferns  were  continually  presenting  themselves.  I  only 
obtained  a  few  fronds  of  some  that  were  nearest  to  the  path ; 
and  it  was  sometimes  quite  tantalizing  to  see,  perhaps  half 
way  down  the  opposite  side  of  a  steep  clay-formed  ravine,  a 
group  of  ferns  exceedingly  beautiful,  and  apparently  new, 
but  quite  beyond  present  reach.  On  such  occasions,  I  found 
myself  involuntarily  exclaiming,  "  Oh  you  beauties !  I  must 
have  you !"  But  I  was  seldom  able  to  do  more  than  point 
them  out  to  a  young  chief  who  might  be  walking  by  my 
side,  and  request  him  to  mark  well  the  spot,  that  we  might 
remember  it  on  our  return. 

Early  the  next  morning  we  took  our  departure  from  the 
station  of  Alamazaotra,  and,  ascending  the  opposite  bank  of 
the  river,  again  entered  the  forest,  and  pursued  our  way 
through  the  same  sort  of  wood  for  about  an  hour,  when  we 
emerged  into  an  open  grassy  country,  with  a  comparatively 
level  path  winding  round  the  base  of  the  hills.  The  bright 
sunshine,  the  fresh  morning  breeze  sweeping  over  the  open 
country,  had  such  an  exhilarating  effect  upon  my  bearers, 
that  they  started  off  at  a  brisk,  and  almost  trotting  pace, 


CHAP.  *n.  ASPECT  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  357 

singi-ng  in  concert  as  they  traveled  along  for  a  considerable 
distance.  We  afterward  passed  through  one  or  two  patches 
of  forest ;  and,  between  three  and  four  hours  from  the  time 
of  starting,  halted  for  breakfast  at  Ampassapojy.  Here,  in 
addition  to  the  usual  presents  of  food,  the  wife  of  the  chief 
brought  me  a  basin  of  sweet  new  milk,  the  first  I  had  tasted 
since  leaving  Tamatave.  I  made  her  what  I  hoped  was  a 
suitable  return,  as  indeed  I  always  endeavored  to  do  for  the 
presents  so  kindly  offered. 

Setting  out  again  soon  after  noon,  we  traveled  nearly 
west  until  about  five  o'clock,  when  we  reached  Moramanga, 
a  village  on  a  hill,  where  we  rested  for  the  night,  and  where 
a  bullock  was  purchased  and  killed  for  the  bearers.  The 
ground  over  which  we  had  traveled  had  been  comparatively 
level,  the  soil  clayey,  covered  with  thick  coarse  grass,  the 
hills  flatter,  and  more  distant  from  each  other.  Many  por- 
tions of  the  country  were  gay  with  the  Seva,  or  Buddka 
Madagascarensis,  covered  with  long  spikes  of  orange-colored 
flowers.  I  also  met  with  a  fine-growing  fern,  which  I  at 
first  thought  was  new,  but  which  has  since  been  pronounced 
to  be  Osmunda  regalia,  indigenous  in  our  own  country,  as 
well  as  other  regions. 

The  aspect  of  the  country  to  the  eastward  of  Moramanga 
was  novel  and  interesting.  For  a  dozen  miles  or  more  the 
district  immediately  below  the  village  resembled  a  vast 
grassy  plain,  bounded  by  the  hills  of  Ankay,  and  beyond 
them  the  high  mountain  ranges  of  Ankova,  appearing  not 
with  round  or  pointed  saw-like  summits,  like  the  distant 
outline  of  the  horizon  in  the  country  through  which  we  had 
passed,  but  in  long,  blue,  and  almost  level  ranges  of  land, 
each  range  receding  farther  away,  but  rising  higher,  and 
presenting  only  here  and  there  a  small  conical  elevation. 

More  than  one  of  the  bearers  of  the  packages  had  been 
seized  with  illness  during  the  journey ;  and  one  to  whom  T 
gave  some  medicine,  though  better,  was  unable  to  proceed. 


358  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  XH. 

On  the  following  morning  it  was  discovered  that  four  others 
had  left  their  companions  during  the  night,  notwithstanding 
the  distribution  of  the  bullock  and  the  promise  of  payment. 
Leaving  five  packages,  therefore,  to  be  sent  after  us,  we 
started  early  across  a  flat  country  covered  with  coarse  grass, 
and  passed  two  or  three  sluggish  rivers,  choked  at  the  sides 
with  rushes  and  weeds.  Over  two  of  them  were  rude 
bridges.  The  men  remarked  of  one  of  the  rivers,  on  which 
I  noticed  a  number  of  beautiful  water-lilies  in  flower,  that 
there  were  plenty  of  crocodiles  there.  It  was  a  wide  muddy 
river,  in  great  part  overgrown  with  reeds. 

Between  ten  and  eleven  o'clock  we  reached  Andakana, 
where  there  is  a  ferry  across  the  Mongoro,  a  smooth  but 
rapid  river,  about  thirty  yards  wide.  I  was  much  surprised 
at  the  great  number  both  of  men  and  women  that  crossed 
the  river  during  the  time  we  halted  on  its  banks.  We  re- 
mained here  about  three  hours,  and  were  then  ferried  over ; 
and,  after  ascending  for  a  considerable  time,  we  passed  along 
an  elevated  but  level  tract  of  country,  until  we  came  to  a 
high  mountain  range  covered  with  wood.  On  reaching  the 
summit  of  a  hill  called  Ifody  we  obtained  a  view  as  extens- 
ive and  magnificent  as  the  country  had  yet  presented. 
The  woods  and  mountain  ranges  of  Ankay,  over  which  we 
had  traveled,  were  spread  out  behind  us  to  the  east ;  to  the 
north,  the  country  of  the  Antsianaka,  stretching  away  like 
an  almost  unbroken  table-land ;  to  the  south  was  the  mount- 
ain range  we  had  crossed,  and  the  province  of  the  Betsileo, 
hilly  and  broken ;  and  before  us,  to  the  west,  the  country 
of  the  Bezanozano  and  the  mountain  Angavo,  beyond  which 
were  the  hills  of  Ankova. 

Having  rested  ourselves,  and  gazed  for  a  while  on  the 
wide  and  varied  panorama,  we  descended  the  hill,  and 
shortly  afterward  reached  the  small  village  of  Ambodin- 
ifody.  This  I  suppose  to  be  a  military  post,  for  two  sol- 
diers, one  carrying  a  musket  with  a  bayonet  fixed  to  it,  the 


CHAP.  xii.  FRIENDS  FROM  THE  CAPITAL.  359 

other  a  spear,  stood  outside  the  door  of  the  house  before 
which  my  bearers  halted.  The  soldiers  saluted  me  or  the 
officer  by  whom  I  was  accompanied.  The  one  who  carried 
the  musket  gave  the  word  of  command,  which,  as  the  whole 
was  so  sudden  and  unexpected,  I  might  not  perhaps  hear 
distinctly;  but  what  I  did  comprehend  seemed  like,  "Hear 
rank  take  open  order — present — fire!"  These  words  were 
rather  startling,  but  my  companions  maintained  the  utmost 
gravity. 

While  waiting  here  I  walked  out  to  search  for  plants  in 
some  of  the  spots  we  had  passed,  and  returning  before  sun- 
set found  a  nice  clean  mat  spread  in  the  house  I  was  to 
occupy. 

During  the  evening  half  a  dozen  friends  arrived — grave, 
dignified  men,  whom  I  had  never  seen  before,  but  with 
some  of  whom  I  had  repeatedly  corresponded.  The  one 
who  came  first  brought  a  present  of  poultry  and  rice,  and  a 
present  from  the  prince,  bidding  me  welcome,  and  express- 
ing his  pleasure  at  hearing  of  my  approach  toward  the  cap- 
ital; the  others  had  come  three  days'  journey  from  the 
capital  to  convey  to  me  the  greetings  of  their  friends  there. 
Their  welcome  was  indeed  most  affecting.  They  had  much 
to  relate,  and  much  to  ask,  and  I  was  glad  to  assure  them 
of  the  deep  affection  and  general  interest  felt  in  their  wel- 
fare by  friends  in  England.  We  united  in  the  expression 
of  our  grateful  feelings  for  having  been  permitted  to  meet 
each  other,  and  it  was  late  before  we  parted — later  still  be- 
fore I  could  sleep. 

By  seven  the  next  morning  we  resumed  our  journey,  one 
of  my  friends  accompanying  us  in  his  palanquin.  After 
traveling  about  an  hour  a  chief  came  out  of  an  adjacent 
house  and  earnestly  solicited  me  to  go  in  to  see  a  sick  per- 
son. I  had  frequently  given  medicine  to  the  bearers  dur- 
ing the  journey  with  good  effect,  and  their  report  of  this 
had  perhaps  caused  the  present  application.  On  entering 


360  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xn. 

the  house  I  found  a  young  man  about  seventeen  years  of 
age,  the  son  of  the  host,  suffering  from  fever.  I  told  them 
I  had  no  medicine  with  me,  but  if  they  would  send  to  the 
place  where  I  should  halt  I  would  give  them  some.  The 
brother  of  the  sick  man  instantly  offered  to  go  with  us,  but 
before  we  departed  they  said  their  morning  meal  was  ready, 
and  invited  us  to  partake  with  them.  Not  wishing  to  de- 
cline the  hospitality  of  this  the  first  home  of  friends  I  had 
come  to  visit,  I  was  directed  to  a  clean  mat  spread  out  on 
one  side  of  the  floor,  the  friends  with  whom  I  had  passed 
the  previous  evening  and  the  members  of  the  family  sitting 
round.  The  covers  were  then  taken  off  the  large  earthen 
pots,  standing  on  the  fire  near  the  centre  of  the  house,  and 
the  hosts  helped  their  guests.  A  plate  of  nicely-boiled  rice 
and  milk  proved  very  acceptable  to  me,  as  I  was  still  far 
from  well.  The  rice  for  the  others  was  served  in  a  bright- 
ly-glazed earthen  vessel,  like  a  bowl  fixed  on  a  stand.  On 
the  top  of  the  rice  the  meat  was  placed,  one  or  two  horn 
spoons  were  stuck  in  the  rice,  which  was  then  placed  before 
the  guests.  The  house  was  different  in  structure  and  ar- 
rangement from  those  in  the  provinces  through  which  I 
had  passed.  It  was  smaller,  and  more  compactly  built. 
The  cracks  in  the  walls  were  filled  up  with  clay.  The 
sleeping-places  were  better  arranged.  The  water  was  not 
brought  in  from  the  river,  and  kept  in  bamboo  canes  six  or 
seven  feet  long;  but  was  kept  in  large  circular  earthen 
jars,  holding  two  or  three  pailfuls  each.  From  these  the 
water  was  obtained  by  dipping  a  ladle  formed  of  the  broad 
end  of  a  horn  attached  to  a  long  wooden  handle.  I  could 
not  but  notice  the  superior  neatness  and  comfort  of  the 
house,  and  the  cheerfulness  of  the  family. 

On  resuming  our  journey  we  traveled  over  a  broad  flat 
valley,  where  the  extensive  embankments  for  rice-fields 
spread  over  a  large  part  of  the  lower  ground ;  a  few  only 
of  these  fields  being  now  cultivated,  their  aspect  seemed 


CHAP.  xii.  PRINCE  RAMONJA'S  VILLAGE.  361 

to  indicate  that  the  population  had,  in  former  times,  been 
much  larger  than  at  present.  Our  road  led  us  toward  a 
large  inclosure  formed  by  walls  nine  or  ten  feet  high,  the 
roof-shaped  top  of  the  wall  being  armed  with  pointed 
spikes  firmly  cemented  in  the  sun-hardened  clay  of  which 
the  wall  was  composed,  and  placed  within  a  few  inches  of 
each  other  around  the  whole  inclosure.  As  the  gates  to 
this  inclosure  were  open  we  passed  through,  and  in  the 
centre  passed  by  a  large  and  well-built  house  of  wood,  with 
floors,  and  several  apartments ;  while  within  the  same  in- 
closure I  noticed  a  number'  of  inferior  structures.  The 
whole  was  in  good  preservation,  and  was  altogether  the 
most  feudal  or  aristocratic  looking  place  we  had  met  with. 

Soon  after  leaving  the  inclosure  we  crossed  the  clear- 
flowing  river  Valala,  and  wound  our  way  through  planta- 
tions along  a  path  formed  on  the  side  of  steep  banks, 
through  deep  cuttings  in  clay,  and  by  large  blocks  of  gran- 
ite, to  one  of  the  villages  of  Prince  Kamonja,  at  the  foot  of 
Angavo  (literally,  the  lofty),  a  high  massive  mountain  that 
had  been  long  in  sight.  This  was  the  first  fortified  village 
we  had  entered.  The  ditch  was  deep,  the  path  across  it  to 
the  gateway  narrow.  The  wall  or  fence  on  the  upper  side 
of  the  ditch  was  terminated  by  large  upright  stones ;  and 
the  gate  itself,  a  large  slab  or  stone  which  it  would  require 
a  number  of  men  to  move,  stood  against  the  wall  just  with- 
in the  gateway.  I  passed  through  the  village  to  the  house 
of  Ramonja,  a  well-built  wooden  edifice  with  a  lofty  nar- 
row roof. 

As  soon  as  I  had  entered  the  house  an  aged  woman,  tall, 
but  shriveled  and  gray-headed,  rose  from  her  seat,  and, 
stooping  as  she  moved,  came  toward  me,  bursting  into  the 
most  passionate  expressions  of  joy,  and  exclaiming,  "Efa 
tonga !  efa  tonga !  is  come,  is  come !"  then  clasping  my  hand 
between  both  her  own,  she  continued,  "O  Kamonja,  Ka- 
monja! how  happy  you  will  be!"  At  length,  when  she 


362  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xn. 

had  persuaded  me  to  be  seated,  she  squatted  down  on  the 
mat,  and,  gathering  her  laniba  closely  round  her  shoulders, 
sat  for  some  time,  gazing  steadfastly  at  me  in  silence.  I 
was  informed  that  she  had  been  Prince  Eamonja's  nurse, 
was  allowed  to  call  him  her  child,  and,  knowing  the  pleas- 
ure my  arrival  would  afford  him,  had  thus  given  vent  to 
her  feelings. 

I  had  not  been  long  in  the  house  before  an  aid-de-camp 
from  the  capital  arrived  with  a  letter  from  the  Prince  Ra- 
monja  himself,  expressing,  in  terms  of  much  affection,  the 
pleasure  which  the  news  of  my  approach  had  afforded  him, 
and  informing  me  that  he  had  sent  instructions  that  a  bul- 
lock and  other  provisions  should  be  presented  on  our  ar- 
rival at  Angavo.  I  had  much  pleasant  conversation  with 
the  officer  who  brought  the  letter,  and  who  was,  in  personal 
appearance,  one  of  the  finest  men  I  had  seen. 

Between  one  and  two  o'clock  my  breakfast  was  brought. 
Among  the  presents  I  had  received  on  the  previous  day 
were  some  fowls  which  had  been  fed  in  a  manner  peculiar 
to  Madagascar.  The  bird  is  confined  in  a  hole,  or  a  close 
sort  of  basket,  and  fed  with  a  paste  made  of  rice  flour  (much 
in  the  same  way  that  turkeys  are  sometimes  crammed),  un- 
til it  becomes  enormously  fat.  One  of  these  birds  had  been 
cooked  for  my  breakfast,  and  was  almost  one  mass  of  fat. 
The  layer  of  fat  on  the  legs  and  some  other  parts  was  a  full 
inch  in  thickness.  Fowls  thus  fed  are  said  to  fetch  a  high 
price  in  the  market,  and  to  be  esteemed  by  Malagasy  epi- 
cures as  excellent  eating. 

In  the  course  of  the  afternoon  the  prince's  head  man 
here  and  most  of  his  people  came  and  requested  to  see  me. 
On  going  out  I  found  my  friends  and  the  chiefs  who  had 
traveled  with  me  arranged  along  the  front  of  the  house,  and 
the  head  man  of  the  village  and  his  friends  on  the  opposite 
side.  In  the  centre  had  been  placed  a  dozen  baskets  of 
rice,  with  several  of  manioc  and  sweet  potatoes,  and  two 


CHAP.  xn.  PRESENT  OF  PROVISIONS.  363 

large  bundles  of  sugar-canes,  besides  poultry ;  and  a  tame 
bullock,  which  had  been  reposing  in  the  yard  all  the  morn- 
ing, standing  near  them.  I  was  about  to  take  my  place 
among  my  fellow-travelera,  but  was  directed  to  stand  on  the 
stone  step  of  the  door.  The  chief  man,  who,  with  his  com- 
panions, was  arrayed  in  holiday  attire,  then  addressed  me, 
stating  how  much  pleasure  it  gave  them  to  see  me  there  as 
the  friend  of  the  prince  and  the  prince  Rakotond  Radama, 
and  begged  me  to  accept  the  bullock  and  the  other  provi- 
sions before  me  as  the  prince's  gift.  I  expressed  my  deep- 
felt  gratitude  for  this  manifestation  of  kindness,  and  the  peo- 
ple retired. 

When  my  bearers  were  directed  to  remove  the  provisions 
there  was  a  general  scramble  for  the  sugar-canes,  and  so 
eager  was  the  struggle  that  few  secured  more  than  a  piece 
of  a  cane.  I  afterward  expressed  my  regret  to  one  of  my 
friends  that  so  muck  provision  should  have  been  given,  as 
I  was  sure  my  men  would  have  been  better  without  it. 
But  he  advised  me  not  to  say  so,  as  it  was  the  mode  of 
testifying  pleasure  on  the  arrival  of  a  guest  in  Madagascar, 
and  would  be  painful  to  the  parties  by  whom  it  was  given ; 
also,  that  the  people  of  the  place  would  be  pleased  by  my 
receiving  it,  as  they  would  obtain  a  portion  when  it  was 
distributed.  I  afterward  wrote  to  the  secretary  of  the  gov- 
ernment at  the  capital,  to  the  prince  royal,  as  the  queen's 
son  is  usually  called,  and  to  Prince  Ramonja,  informing 
them  of  my  progress  and  my  arrival  at  Angavo.  One  of 
my  bearers  came  to-day  to  have  a  tooth  drawn,  of  which  I 
soon  relieved  him,  and  he  returned  to  his  quarters.  The 
evening  was  passed  with  a  select  company  of  friends  in 
agreeable,  and  to  me  deeply-affecting  conversation,  respect- 
ing the  perils  and  afflictions  of  the  times  that  were  past,  and 
the  rest  and  the  quiet  of  the  present. 

Soon  after  seven  the  next  morning  we  took  leave  of  the 
kind  friends  with  whom  I  had  held  such  pleasant  inter- 


364  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xn. 

course,  and  wound  our  way  up  the  fertile  and  lovely  valley 
of  Angavo  to  the  pass  in  the  mountains  forming  its  western 
boundary.  The  first  objects  which  attracted  my  attention 
after  leaving  the  village  were  ;a  number  of  picturesque 
tombs,  of  careful  construction  and  considerable  extent.  I 
was  told  they  were  the  resting-places  of  Ramonja's  ances- 
tors. 

The  ascent  upon  which  we  had  entered  was  long  and 
gradual  until  near  the  summit,  but  I  walked  nearly  all  the 
way.  At  different  elevations  we  passed  a  succession  of  ham- 
lets, perched  in  the  most  picturesque  spots,  often  on  points 
of  high  land,  projecting  out  into  the  valley.  The  houses 
were  all  well  built,  with  clean  swept  court-yards  around 
them.  At  one  which  we  passed,  the  first  two-storied  house 
I  had  noticed  since  leaving  Tamatave,  a  woman  was  look- 
ing out  of  a  chamber  window ;  at  others  the  inmates  of  the 
house  seemed  to  be  gathered  together  on  a  sort  of  parapet 
in  front  of  their  dwellings,  in  order  to  see  us  pass.  I  fre- 
quently halted  to  look  back  over  the  wide  green  and  fertile 
valley  we  had  left.  The  cattle  feeding  on  the  sides  of  the 
hills,  the  rustic  villages  scattered  here  and  there  along  its 
borders,  or  on  the  rocky  promontories  jutting  out  from  the 
mountain's  side,  the  gardens  and  rice-fields  mapped  out  be- 
low, and  the  clear  cool  stream  winding  its  way  along  the 
centre,  all  combined  to  form  an  extended  and  beautiful  scene, 
probably  the  more  charming  because  seen  under  a  cloudless 
sky,  and  tinged  with  the  bright  rays  of  the  morning  sun. 

In  little  more  than  an  hour  we  reached  the  pass  near  the 
summit  of  Angavo,  the  natural  fortress  of  the  province  of 
Ankay.  It  is  a  lofty  massive  granite  mountain,  capped  with 
clay,  and  having  steep  inaccessible  sides.  The  small  portion 
of  level  land  on  the  summit  is  defended  by  a  succession  of 
deep  ditches,  extending  nearly  round  it,  and  continued,  one 
after  another,  from  the  summit  to  the  edge  of  the  precipi- 
tous sides.  Before  the  introduction  of  fire-arms,  it  must  have 


CHAP.  xii.  ATHLETIC  SPORTS.  365 

been  almost  impregnable.  It  was  defended  by  the  last  in- 
dependent chief  of  the  Bazanozano  against  Radama,  who,  it 
is  said,  took  it  chiefly  by  the  aid  of  fire-arms,  after  two  days' 
fighting. 

The  descent,  on  the  western  side  of  the  pass,  was  woody 
and  broken.  I  had  noticed  a  few  rare  plants  on  the  eastern 
side,  especially  some  small  lilac-flowered  orchises,  and  the 
small  rich,  bright-flowered  Euphorbia  Bojeri,  resembling  E. 
splendens,  but  with  smaller  and  deeper-colored  scarlet  flow- 
ers. On  the  western  side  the  vegetation  was  rich  and  new. 
It  is  here  that  the  finest  species  of  ebony  produced  in  the 
island  is  found.  I  saw  several  new  orchids,  and  obtained  a 
few  fronds  of  some  unknown  forms.  At  length,  after  cross- 
ing a  somewhat  rapid  stream,  completely  overshadowed  by 
trees  of  luxuriant  foliage,  we  reached  the  open  country,  char- 
acterized by  broad  level  tracts,  laid  out  in  rice-grotmds,  much 
of  it  under  culture,  and  diversified  by  flat  rounded  hills. 

We  halted  at  a  resting-place  for  travelers.  These  resting- 
places,  of  which  we  passed  many  on  our  journey,  are  gener- 
ally a  grassy  knoll,  at  a  distance  from  any  trees,  affording  a 
wide  and  pleasing  prospect,  or  a  position  for  enjoying  a  cool 
refreshing  breeze.  The  multitudes  of  travelers  who  rest  on 
the  grass  tend  to  keep  it  short  and  smooth ;  and  quantities 
of  the  fibre  of  the  sugar-cane,  chewed  by  the  travelers  dur- 
ing their  resting-time,  are  strewn  all  around.  Close  by  this 
place,  a  round  stone,  like  a  large  cannon-ball,  was  lying  on 
the  ground,  and  two  small  stones  were  fixed  upright,  at  a 
distance  of  some  yards  from  each  other.  My  bearers  and 
some  others  of  the  party  instantly  repaired  to  the  spot  where 
this  stone  was  lying,  and  those  who  were  able  took  up  the 
large  round  stone,  and,  standing  near  one  stone,  endeavored 
to  hurl  it  to  the  opposite  stone,  as  a  feat  of  strength.  After 
a  series  of  trials,  only  two — one  of  my  own  bearers,  and  one 
of  a  party  traveling  with  us — were  able  to  cast  it  to  the  re- 
quired distance,  while  some  could  scarcely  lift  it.  When 


366  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xu. 

they  had  finished  their  sport,  we  resumed  our  journey,  and, 
about  an  hour  before  noon,  reached  Ankara  Madinika. 

This  was  the  first  village  in  Ankova,  the  central  province 
of  the  island.  It  was  market-day,  and  a  number  of  men 
and  women  had  goods,  viz.,  rice  and  other  kinds  of  grain, 
roots,  vegetables,  poultry,  raw  cotton,  pet  birds  in  cages,  etc., 
spread  out  on  the  ground,  or  exposed  in  baskets,  by  the 
side  of  the  road,  as  we  entered  the  village.  I  afterward 
walked  through  the  market,  asking  the  price  of  some  of  the 
articles,  and  purchased  some  ready-cooked  sweet  potatoes 
and  manioc,  which  were  exceedingly  good.  The  houses 
here  were  more  substantially  built  than  those  we  had  passed, 
but  dirty  inside.  The  people  were  somewhat  fairer  than 
those  in  the  lower  provinces.  There  did  not  seem  to  be 
much  traffic  in  the  market,  though  a  considerable  number 
of  people  had  come  together. 

Food  already  cooked  is  generally  offered  for  sale  in  the 
Malagasy  markets,  but  the  only  kinds  of  cooked  food  which 
I  saw  were  manioc  and  sweet  potatoes,  which  were  appar- 
ently in  considerable  demand.  There  were  neither  fish, 
nor  eggs,  nor  locusts;  the  season  was  too  early  for  the  lat- 
ter, which  generally  pass  over  the  central  provinces  during 
the  spring  of  the  year,  and  cause  great  destruction  among 
the  fields  and  gardens.  The  locusts  generally  fly  within 
two  or  three  feet  of  the  ground,  and  as  soon  as  their  ap- 
proach is  perceived,  the  people  rush  out,  and  with  great 
clamor  endeavor  to  strike  them  down,  or  inclose  them  in 
their  lambas,  while  the  women  and  children  gather  them 
up  in  baskets  from  the  ground,  and  detach  their  legs  and 
wings,  by  shaking  them  from  one  end  to  the  other  of  a  long 
sack,  in  the  same  way  that  grocers  clean  their  raisins.  The 
legs  and  wings  are  then  winnowed  away,  and  the  bodies 
dried  in  the  srnif  or  sometimes  fried  in  fat,  and  then  kept 
in  sacks  for  food,  or  sent  to  the  markets  for  sale.  In  some 
parts  of  Ankova  and  in  the  provinces  of  the  Betsileo  to  the 


MAKKETS  OF  ANKOVA. 


367 


CATCHING   LOCUSTS. 


southward,  grasshoppers  and  silk-worms,  in  the  chrysalis 
state,  are  collected  in  large  quantities,  cooked  and  eaten  as 
food,  or  offered  for  sale. 

The  market  at  this  place  was  small,  and  only  a  few  arti- 
cles were  exhibited ;  but  the  markets  in  this  province  are, 
many  of  them,  especially  those  held  near  the  capital,  at- 
tended by  multitudes  of  people  from  the  surrounding  vil- 
lages, and  contain  every  kind  of  manufacture  both  native 
and  foreign,  as  well  as  all  kinds  of  native  produce  and  arti- 
cles of  food.  At  some,  persons  attend  with  large  earthen 
jars  of  water,  which  they  sell  in  small  quantities  to  parties 
who  may  be  thirsty  while  in  the  market ;  while  others  cook 
and  dispose  of  meat  ready  dressed  to  those  who  may  be 
hungry.  Others,  as  in  the  market  here,  dispose  of  cooked 


368  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xn. 

manioc  and  potatoes.  There  was  part  of  a  bullock,  cut  up 
in  small  pieces,  for  sale  in  one  part  of  the  market  at  this 
place.  The  samples  of  rice  looked  exceedingly  good. 

Having  rested  a  couple  of  hours,  we  journeyed  on,  and 
traveled  through  a  country  of  low  hills  and  wide  valleys, 
comparatively  well  cultivated,  and  thickly  peopled.  The 
parts  of  the  country  not  under  cultivation  were  covered 
with  thick  grass.  Immense  blocks  of  granite,  or  gneiss, 
rose  up  in  different  directions  above  the  surface  of  the 
ground,  and  the  sides  and  summits  of  the  mountains  often 
exhibited  a  large  extent  of  naked  granite  rock.  As  we  ad- 
vanced the  houses  seemed  to  improve.  If  not  larger  than 
those  to  the  eastward,  they  were  better  built.  The  walls 
-were  of  mud  or  clay,  with  doors  and  window-shutters  of 
wood,  and  the  roofs  covered  with  a  neat,  thick  thatching  of 
grass.  They  were  surrounded  by  fences,  and  sometimes 
shaded  by  trees,  with  inclosed  gardens  or  fields  outside, 
planted  with  different  kinds  of  produce.  This,  together 
with  the  cattle  feeding  on  the  plain,  often  gave  to  the  whole, 
as  seen  from  a  distance,  the  appearance  of  an  English 
farm. 

After  crossing  six  or  seven  swampy  streams,  where  the 
men  seemed  much  afraid  of  crocodiles  or  serpents,  we  ap- 
proached the  place  at  which  we  were  to  sleep.  It  was  an 
ancient  fortified  village,  standing  on  the  summit  of  a  hill, 
with  a  deep  ditch  or  fosse  outside,  the  entrance  being  by  a 
narrow  stone  gateway,  and  the  space  within  crowded  with 
houses.  These  were  so  irregularly  placed,  and  so  crowded 
together,  that  my  palanquin  could  scarcely  be  carried  along 
the  passages  between  the  houses  to  the  place  where  I  was 
to  lodge.  Here  I  was  most  affectionately  welcomed  by  a 
number  of  friends,  with  some  of  whom  I  had  had  much 
pleasant  intercourse  on  a  former  occasion  at  Tamatave. 
My  meeting  and  intercourse  with  friends,  at  this  place,  was 
deeply  affecting ;  and  the  accounts  I  received  of  the  severe 


UUAP.    XII. 


MODE  OF  FATTENING  CATTLE. 


369 


afflictions  of  some,  and  the  perils  of  others,  almost  deprived 
me  of  sleep. 

We  were  stirring  early,  and  in  looking  over  the  village 
nothing  struck  me  as  more  surprising  than  the  narrow  and 
intricate  passages  between  the  houses,  and  from  one  part  to 
another.  Here  I  saw  for  the  first  time  two  pits  called 
fahitra,  in  which  oxen  are  confined  and  fattened.  The 


pits,  which  were  close  to  the  houses,  were  somewhat  larger 
than  the  animal,  and  a  little  deeper  than  the  top  of  his 
horns.  Over  one  of  these  a  covering  of  thatch  was  placed ; 
and  the  food  of  the  animals,  fresh  wet  grass,  was  placed 
upon  a  ledge  cut  out  of  the  clay  sides  of  the  pit,  in  a  rude 
sort  of  rack. 

Very  early  in  my  journey  I  found  that  if  I  lefo  my  clothes 
by  my  bedside  at  night,  they^Vere  in  danger  of  being  de- 
voured by  the  rats  aud  mice  before  morning.  Cats  and 
owls  being  considered  animals  of  ill-omen,  are  not  allowed 
near  any  house  ;  so  the  rats  and  mice  are  left  undisturbed, 

AA 


370  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xn. 

and  have  it  all  their  own  way.  I  had,  therefore,  been  un- 
der the  necessity  of  putting  all  my  clothes,  including  cap 
and  great-coat,  into  a  bag,  and  hanging  them  up  by  a  cord 
to  one  of  the  rafters  of  the  house.  But  one  night,  when  in 
consequence  of  indisposition  I  had  spread  my  great-coat 
over  me  for  an  additional  blanket,  I  found  in  the  morning 
that  it  had  been  eaten  in  several  places.  Even  the  silk 
handkerchief  spread  over  my  head  had  suffered  considera- 
bly during  the  night ;  but  this  morning  I  found  to  my  great 
distress  that  several  parts  of  a  manuscript  vocabulary  which 
I  kept  at  the  head  of  my  palanquin,  had  been  eaten  by  the 
rats.  For  the  future,  therefore,  I  never  ventured  to  leave 
any  book  exposed  by  night. 

We  left  the  village  about  seven  o'clock,  passing  out  by 
the  narrow  gateway  between  two  high  unhewn  granite 
stones,  and  proceeding  by  a  narrow  path  over  the  ditch, 
which  was  about  eighteen  feet  deep  and  four  or  six  feet 
wide.  A  number  of  peach-trees  growing  within  the  inclos- 
ure  were  just  coming  into  bloom,  and  appeared  to  thrive 
well.  A  little  euphorbia  hedge,  growing  along  the  top  of 
the  fence  inside  the  ditch,  was  covered  with  the  richest 
deep-colored  scarlet  flowers.  The  grass  of  large  tracts  of 
country  over  which  we  had  passed  had  been  recently  burn- 
ed for  the  sake  of  securing  fresh  young  grass  for  the  cattle, 
and  long  lines  of  fire  were  occasionally  seen  traversing  the 
plain  or  the  mountain  side,  leaving  nothing  but  a  black 
smoky  or  ashy  surface  behind  it. 

I  was  much  impressed  with  the  difference  between  the 
Hovas  and  the  inhabitants  of  the  country  through  which  I 
had  passed,  as  manifest  in  the  position  and  defenses  of  their 
villages,  indicating  that  they  must  have  been  a  marauding 
sort  of  people,  ever  liable  to  reprisals  from  other  tribes,  or 
else  constantly  engaged  in  war  among  themselves.  Their 
villages  are  all  built  on  the  summits  of  hills,  inclosed  in  clay 
walls  of  varied  height  and  thickness,  and  having  but  one 


CHAP.  xii.       FORTIFICATION  OF  HOVA  VILLAGES.  371 

narrow  and  difficult  entrance,  being,  besides  this,  surround- 
ed by  one  or  more  deep  ditches.  These  ditches  around  the 
villages  were  sometimes  extended  to  a  considerable  distance 
from  the  walls  inclosing  their  houses,  and  beyond  these 
there  were  deep  cuttings  across  any  rising  ground  leading 
to  the  village.  Great  skill  was  manifested  in  the  plan  of 
these  defenses,  as  well  as  great  labor  in  their  completion. 
In  no  other  country,  perhaps,  have  the  villages  been  so  uni- 
formly defended  by  this  species  of  fortification  as  in  this 
part  of  Madagascar.  In  this  respect  their  defenses  appear- 
ed more  elaborate  and  permanent  than  those  I  had  noticed 
around  the  Pas  of  New  Zealand  or  the  mountain  fortresses 
of  the  South  Sea  Islands ;  the  former,  though  generally  fix- 
ed in  positions  affording  greater  natural  security,  were  only 
defended  by  a  strong  stockade,  the  latter  by  thick  stone 
walls.  The  extensive  introduction  of  fire-arms,  and  also  of 
cannon,  within  the  last  forty  years,  has  rendered  these  for- 
tifications useless,  and  they  are  consequently  neglected ;  but 
so  long  as  the  only  weapons  of  attack  were  the  pointed 
stick  or  the  long,  sharp,  iron-headed  spear,  they  must  have 
afforded  considerable  security.  Their  chief  weapons  of  de- 
fense at  that  time  were  stones  or  fragments  of  rock,  which 
were  hurled  at  the  assailants  or  rolled  down  upon  them 
while  in  the  fosse ;  and  against  the  latter  the  hard- wooded 
and  hide-bound  shields  of  the  attacking  party  afforded  no 
protection.  In  closer  conflict  both  parties  used  the  spear, 
which  is  the  national  weapon  of  the  Malagasy. 

The  morning  was  bright,  the  air  cool,  and  the  breeze  re- 
freshing ;  and  after  traveling  over  a  fine  open  country  cov- 
ered with  thick  grass,  we  approached  Ambatomanga,  a  con- 
spicuous and  romantic-looking  village.  It  was  in  full  view 
some  time  before  we  reached  its  walls.  It  stood  upon  the 
summit  of  a  low  round  hill,  one  side  of  which  was  formed 
of  precipitous  rock  rising  from  the  level  of  the  valley  to  a 
height  of  about  four  hundred  feet.  On  one  side  a  consid- 


372  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  xn. 

erable  stream  flowed  round  the  base  of  the  hill,  and  fur- 
nished water  for  extensive  plantations  of  rice  spread  far 
over  the  bottom  of  the  valley  and  in  terraces  along  the  low- 
er sides  of  the  hills.  The  slope  of  the  hill  and  part  of  the 
adjacent  land  were  inclosed  and  planted  with/a  few  trees 
and  vegetables.  The  road,  crossing  a  bridge  of  stone  slabs, 
led  up  to  a  narrow  path  over  the  fosse  to  the  opening  in  the 
walls  by  which  the  village  was  surrounded,  and  which  were 
in  good  preservation.  The  interior  was  not  so  crowded 
with  houses  as  many  of  the  villages  in  the  country,  and  I 
noticed  clusters  of  trees  in  several  places,  as  if  small  or- 
chards were  attached  to  some  of  the  dwellings.  The  houses 
were  all  built  after  the  Hova  style,  with  high  narrow  roofs, 
the  rafters  at  each  end  projecting  several  feet  beyond  their 
junction  at  the  apex  of  the  roof,  like  a  couple  of  branches 
or  a  pair  of  straight  horns. 

In  the  centre  of  these  houses  was  that  of  the  chief,  which, 
from  being  the  first  of  the  kind  I  had  seen,  appeared  all  the 
more  remarkable.  It  might  be  about  sixty  feet  long,  and 
half  as  wide.  It  was  two  stories  high,  with  door  and  win- 
dows in  each  story,  and  a  steep  roof  with  attic  windows  in 
the  sides  and  the  ends.  The  side  walls  were  sheltered  by 
two  verandas,  one  above  the  other,  and  the  posts  which 
supported  the  two  verandas  were  upward  of  twenty  feet 
high.  This  remarkable  building,  with  walls  of  wood  framed 
in  diagonal  panels,  roofed  with  shingles,  spacious,  more  than 
double  the  height  of  any  of  the  other  houses,  and  European 
and  attractive  in  its  form,  was  standing  upon  the  highest 
spot  in  the  village,  surrounded  by  a  wall,  and  imparting  al- 
together a  peculiar  character  to  the  whole  place. 

To  the  north  of  the  village,  and  connected  with  it  by 
a  narrow  path,  and  apparently  inclosed  within  the  same 
walls,  there  was  an  immense  pile  of  naked  granite  rock, 
extending  upward  of  two  hundred  feet  high,  and  as  many 
broad.  A  solitary  house,  with  thick  stone  walls  and  thatch- 


CHAP.  xii.  AMBATOMANGA.  373 

ed  roof,  crowned  its  summit.  A  tall  bamboo  cane,  with  a 
piece  of  cloth  fluttering  in  the  breeze,  and  one  or  two  stunt- 
ed shrubs  growing  on  one  side  near  the  edge,  were  the  only 
other  objects  I  could  see.  The  name  of  the  village,  Amba- 
tomanga,  literally  blue  rock,  was  evidently  derived  from  this 
pile  of  blue  granite.  And  the  rock,  the  chief's  house,  the 
walled  village,  the  pass,  the  winding  stream,  the  green,  un- 
dulating plain,  the  roads  enlivened  by  the  passing  travel- 
ers, the  massive,  and  often  naked  granite  mountains  in  the 
distance,  seen  under  a  bright  blue  sky,  combined  to  present 
a  picture  as  novel  as  it  was  varied  and  beautiful.  I  could 
not  help  again  wishing  that  my  photographic  apparatus 
had  been  accessible,  in  order  that  I  might  have  rendered 
the  picture  permanent. 

Friends  from  the  capital  met  us  as  we  approached,  and, 
after  cordial  greetings,  we  entered  this  feudal-looking  vil- 
lage, passing  along  narrow  intricate  passages  until  we  halt- 
ed at  the  house  in  which  I  was  to  lodge,  and  which  belong- 
ed to  the  resident  head  man  of  the  place,  the  chief  to  whom 
the  large  house  belonged  being  absent  at  the  capital.  The 
house  to  which  I  had  been  conducted  was  large  and  well 
built.  Part  of  the  floor  was  covered  with  matting.  A 
neatly-framed  four-post  bedstead,  on  which  mats  were 
spread,  with  a  native-made  chair  by  its  side,  occupied  one 
corner ;  another  sleeping-place  of  an  inferior  kind  occupied 
the  opposite  end  of  the  house;  while  large  water-jars  and 
other  useful  articles  filled  up  the  intervening  space.  There 
was  a  raised  hearth  near  the  centre ;  and  among  the  furni- 
ture and  ornaments,  some  of  which  were  curious,  I  observed 
u  large  drum,  apparently  of  native  manufacture,  the  barrel 
being  formed  out  of  a  solid  piece  of  wood,  hanging  from  a 
peg  near  the  top  of  the  wall.  The  chief  himself  soon  en- 
tered and  gave  me  a  cordial  welcome,  while  crowds  of  the 
villagers  gathered  round  the  house  to  gaze  at  the  stranger. 

One  of  my  bearers,  who  had  previously  complained,  was 


374  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xn. 

so  ill  during  the  previous  night  as  to  be  unable  to  travel 
with  us  in  the  morning :  but  with  the  help  of  companions, 
who  had  carried  him  part  of  the  way,  he  arrived  soon  after 
noon.  He  was  lodged  in  an  adjacent  house ;  and,  as  soon 
as  I  was  aware  of  his  illness,  I  went  and  found  him  suffer- 
ing severely.  I  gave  him  some  medicine  and  expressed 
my  regret  that  he  or  his  companions  had  not  informed  me 
before,  as  the  fever,  from  which  he  was  then  suffering  so 
much,  might  probably  have  been  prevented. 

During  the  afternoon  several  friends  from  the  capital  ar- 
rived with  a  present  of  poultry,  etc.,  and  a  letter  from 
friends  there  conveying  a  warm  and  affectionate  assurance 
of  welcome  and  earnest  desire  that  we  might  soon  greet 
each  other.  The  messengers  themselves  seemed  to  find 
much  satisfaction  in  unitedly  welcoming  the  stranger  sent 
by  their  friends  in  England  to  visit  them.  Twenty  years 
had  passed  away  since  the  English  who  had  formerly  resid- 
ed among  them  left  the  country ;  but  my  arrival,  they  said, 
was  evidence  that  the  Malagasy  were  not  forgotten  by  their 
early  and  steady  friends.  I  expressed  my  deep  sense  of 
their  kindness,  and  observed  to  one  of  my  companions  that 
I  would  rather  decline  the  present,  as  my  people  had  more 
than  enough  already;  but  they  said,  "Don't  refuse  this 
present :  it  will  grieve  them  much  if  you  do."  I  therefore 
cheerfully  accepted  what  they  had  brought,  and,  when  I 
had  written  a  short  letter  of  grateful  acknowledgment  to 
the  friends  by  whom  they  were  sent,  they  returned. 

The  next  day  was  Sunday,  and  I  was'glad  to  make  it  a 
day  of  rest.  In  the  morning  a  message  arrived  from  an 
officer  at  the  capital,  who  had  when  a  youth  been  educated 
in  England.  He  expressed  his  pleasure  at  my  approach, 
and  his  hopes  of  hearing  from  friends  in  England,  "  that 
happy  land,"  as  he  designated  it ;  and  at  the  same  time  of- 
fering some  friendly  suggestions.  I  sent  a  short  reply  by 
his  messenger.  In  the  course  of  the  day  a  messenger  ar- 


CHAP.  xn.  FKIENDS  FKOM  THE  CAPITAL.  375 

rived  from  the  prince,  conveying  a  most  cordial  welcome, 
and  the  expression  of  his  pleasure  at  hearing  of  my  near 
approach. 

During  the  afternoon  I  walked  out  for  a  couple  of  miles 
or  more  along  the  road  to  the  westward  of  the  village.  The 
wind  was  blowing  fresh  from  the  northwest,  and  though  I 
wore  a  thick  great-coat,  and  walked  briskly,  I  felt  the  cold 
far  more  keenly  than  I  had  expected.  After  my  return, 
other  friends  arrived  from  the  capital  to  bid  me  welcome,  and 
with  them  I  had  much  interesting  conversation  and  enjoy- 
ment of  this  day's  rest.  In  the  evening  the  resident  chief 
of  the  village  presented  me  with  a  sheep  and  some  poultry, 
etc.,  in  the  name  and  by  the  order  of  the  proprietor  of  the 
place,  now  residing  at  Tananarive,  and  whom  he  designated 
as  the  friend  of  the  queen. 

August  25th.  I  had  passed  a  restless  night,  partly  from 
a  slight  fever  and  partly  from  a  multitude  of  thoughts. 
The  sheep  which  had  been  presented  on  the  previous  day 
was  now  killed ;  and,  as  my  eyes  were  exceedingly  painful, 
and  the  weather  unfavorable,  we  did  not  proceed  until  after 
breakfast.  My  bearer  was  still  suffering,  but  hoped  by  the 
help  of  his  companions  to  follow  us  to  the  next  resting- 
place.  Before  setting  out,  a  messenger  arrived  from  one  of 
the  officers  of  the  government  to  say  that  I  was  to  proceed 
to  a  village  which  was  named,  at  the  foot  of  the  hill  on  which 
the  capital  stands,  when  an  officer  would  be  sent  to  conduct 
me  to  the  house  appointed  for  my  residence.  About  ten 
o'clock  we  set  out,  traversing  the  labyrinth  of  paths  between 
the  houses  of  the  village ;  and,  passing  .through  an  opening 
in  the  walls,  crossed  over  three  or  four  deep  ditches,  and 
then  continued  our  way  along  smooth,  well-beaten  paths, 
and  over  an  undulating  plain  covered  with  long  thick  grass. 
The  officer  who  had  arrived  accompanied  me  in  his  palan- 
quin. The  morning  was  cold,  with  drizzling  rain,  when  we 
started  ;  but  the  weather  improved  as  we  advanced.  The 


376  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP   xn. 

aspect  of  the  country  was  sterile.  No  trees  or  bushes  were 
visible  except  a  few  around  the  houses ;  but  large  portions 
of  the  land  were  under  cultivation.  The  absence  of  trees  in 
Imerina  makes  fuel  very  scarce,  and  I  saw  several  persons 
employed  in  cutting  long  dry  grass,  and  tying  it  up  in  bun- 
dles :  these  are  daily  sold  in  the  markets  of  the  capital  for 
fuel.  I  saw  only  a  few  cattle,  but  occasionally  noticed  small 
flocks  of  sheep  of  a  reddish  brown  color,  and  covered  with 
hair. 

We  passed  during  our  journey  to-day  several  tombs  of 
the  Hovas.  They  consist  generally  of  a  square  raised  plat- 
form, having  their  sides  formed  by  stones  fixed  in  the 
ground ;  with  sometimes  a  succession  of  smaller  platforms 
one  upon  another,  giving  a  sort  of  pyramidal  form  to  the 
tomb ;  or  else  there  are  two  or  three  large  upright  stones 
standing  erect  within  the  first  stone  inclosure.  These  tomb.^ 
generally  occupy  small  elevations  at  a  short  distance  from 
the  road.  Some  of  them  seemed  to  be  ancient,  and  may 
justly  be  reckoned  among  the  most  remarkable  and  impress- 
ive antiquities  of  the  country. 

There  were  many  travelers  on  the  road,  and  one  native 
chief  passed  us  on  horseback,  riding  an  excellent  animal. 
Between  three  and  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  we  reached 
the  small  village  of  Amboipo,  where  a  messenger  from  the 
queen's  secretary  gave  me  a  letter,  requesting  me  to  halt  at 
that  village  for  the  night,  as  the  queen  had  appointed  the 
following  day  for  my  entering  the  capital,  and  that  three 
officers  would  be-  sent  to  conduct  me  to  my  residence. 

On  entering  the  house  in  which  I  was  to  spend  the  night 
I  found  myself  in  a  true  Malagasy  peasant's  cottage.  The 
inside,  not  above  twenty  feet  square,  was  divided  by  a  rush 
partition  into  two  compartments  or  rooms.  The  first,  into 
which  the  door  opened,  was  appropriated  to  a  pen  for  calves 
and  a  pen  for  lambs,  in  which  one  was  bleating  for  a  long 
time,  and  also  a  pen  for  ducks  and  chickens.  The  inner 


CHAP.  xii.  NATIVE  SILK- WEAVING.  377 

apartment  was  working-room,  cooking-room,  eating-room, 
sitting-room,  and  sleeping-room.  In  this  inner  apartment, 
when  we  entered,  the  husband  was  watching  a  large  pot  of 
rice  boiling  on  the  fire,  and  the  wife  was  seated  on  a  mat 
on  the  floor  before  a  fragile  rustic  loom,  weaving  a  fine  silk 
lamba,  or  scarf,  such  as  are  worn  by  the  Hova  chiefs  on  hol- 
idays or  public  occasions.  The  loom  was  of  most  simple 
materials  and  primitive  construction.  Four  stakes  of  une- 
qual length,  fixed  upright  in  the  ground,  with  rods  across, 
composed  the  frame-work  of  the  loom. 

In  front  of  this  the  woman  sat  on  the  ground.  At  the 
distance  of  six  or  seven  feet  were  two  short  sticks  driven 
into  the  ground,  with  a  rod  stretching  across,  and  over  this 
the  woof  of  silk  to  be  woven  was  fastened.  It  is  with  ap- 
paratus so  simple  and  fragile  that  the  beautiful  lambas  of 
the  Hovas,  with  their  rich  colors  and  elegantly-figured  pat- 
terns, are  woven.  Silk- worms  are  numerous  in  some  of  the 
provinces,  and  silk  might  be  produced  in  great  abundance. 

Although  on  entering  I  requested  that  the  woman  would 
not  disturb  herself,  she  soon  untied  the  different  parts  of 
the  loom,  rolled  up  the  silk,  placed  it  in  a  rush  basket 
standing  by  her  side,  pulled  up  the  stakes,  and,  in  less  than 
five  minutes,  no  sign  of  the  work  in  which  she  had  been 
engaged  was  to  be  seen.  The  bedstead,  I  found,  was  a  fix- 
ture, the  posts  being  driven  into  the  ground.  The  fire-place- 
was  near  the  foot  of  the  bed,  and  a  small  window  at  the  end. 

In  the  course  of  the  evening  upward  of  twenty  friends 
came  down  from  the  capital  to  express  their  thankfulness 
and  joy  at  my  arrival.  Some  of  them  were  remarkable- 
looking  men,  whose  presence  would  have  commanded  re- 
spect in  any  intelligent  assembly,  and  whose  past  history  of 
peril  and  deliverance  was  among  the  most  remarkable  and 
deeply-interesting  of  any  I  had  ever  listened  to.  They  quite 
filled  my  little  room.  Ejaculations  of  grateful  joy  at  our 
meeting  were  all  that  for  some  time  could  be  uttered,  and 


378  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xn. 

these  were  mingled  with  tears.  Many  earnest  and  affec- 
tionate inquiries  after  friends  who  had  formerly  resided  in 
the  country  were  made.  Many  deeply-affecting  accounts 
of  events,  and  changes,  and  deaths  among  themselves  were 
related ;  and  long,  indeed,  it  was  before  we  separated.  How 
much  more  interesting  and  permanently  affecting  has  the 
history  of  a  number  of  these  men  since  become ! 


CHAP.  xin.    ARRIVAL  OF  THE  QUEEN'S  OFFICERS.  379 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

Arrival  of  the  Queen's  Officers. — Entry  to  the  Capital. — Extent  and  Ap- 
pearance of  Antananarivo. — Palace  and  chief  Buildings. — Intricacy  of  the 
Roads. — Description  of  the  House  and  Accommodation  provided  by  the 
Queen. — Welcome  on  arriving. — Salubrity  of  the  Climate. — Munificent 
Present  from  the  Queen. — Visit  from  the  Prince  Royal. — His  Person  and 
Dress. — His  Estimate  of  the  English. — The  Meaning  of  Protection. — In- 
ducements offered  to  him  to  become  a  Roman  Catholic. — Prince  Ramonja. 
— Message  from  the  Queen. — Satisfaction  of  the  Court  with  the  Friendship 
of  England. — Affecting  Interview  with  the  Family  of  a  former  Friend. — 
Presents  from  the  Prince  and  Princess,  and  the  chief  Nobles. — Excursion 
with  the  Prince. — Native-built  stone  Bridges. — The  silver  Spear. — Pal- 
ace of  Isoaierana. — Places  of  Execution. — Excursion  with  the  Prince  and 
Princess. — Procession  and  Music. — Princess's  Figure,  Dress,  and  Palan- 
quin.— Culture  of  the  Vine. — Simple  and  primitive  Homage  of  the  Vil- 
lagers to  their  Rulers. — Inquiries  of  the  Princess  respecting  the  Royal 
Family  of  England. — Music. — English  National  Anthem. — Dancing. — 
Military  Encampments. — Request  of  a  Slave. 

I  HAD  passed  a  restless  night,  feeling  far  from  well,  and  not 
expecting  to  be  summoned  to  the  capital  at  an  early  hour, 
had  told  my  attendant  to  prepare  breakfast  by  nine  o'clock. 
Soon  after  eight,  however,  on  the  morning  of  the  26th  of 
August,  1856,  Izaro  came  into  my  room  to  announce  that 
three  officers  on  horseback  had  arrived  to  conduct  me  to 
the  capital.  I  sent  him  back  to  ask  them  to  wait  a  short 
time ;  a  request  with  which  they  politely  complied,  begging 
me,  at  the  same  time,  not  to  put  myself  to  any  inconven- 
ience. They  also  sent  a  message  to  the  effect  that  they 
had  orders  to  conduct  me  to  the  house  appointed  for  my 
residence,  where  I  was  to  rest  myself,  and  the  queen  would 
let  me  know  when  she  would  see  me. 

To  enable  me  to  face  the  keen  sharp  morning  air,  I  put 


380  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAI-.  xin. 

on  extra  woolen  clothing;  and,  as  soon  as  I  was  dressed, 
the  officers  were  invited  to  come  in.  Three  intelligent- 
looking  young  men,  dressed  in  European  style,  entered, 
and  addressing  me  in  tolerable  English,  said  they  had  been 
sent  by  the  queen  to  bid  me  welcome  to  Madagascar,  and 
to  conduct  me  into  the  capital.  I  thanked  them,  and  told 
them  I  was  glad  to  hear  them  speak  English  so  well.  They 
said  they  knew  a  little,  but  very  much  wished  to  learn 
more. 

Leaving  the  house,  these  officers  conducted  me  down  the 
steep  hill  on  which  it  was  situated ;  and,  on  reaching  the 
level  ground  below,  I  found  two  palanquins,  each  resem- 
bling an  arm-chair  with  poles  attached  to  the  sides.  A 
purple  cloak,  lined  with  velvet,  was  hung  over  the  back  of 
one  which  had  been  sent  by  the  prince ;  the  other  had  been 
sent  by  a  friend.  The  officers  directed  me  to  the  former ; 
and,  as  soon  as  I  was  seated,  they  mounted  their  horses,  and, 
accompanied  by  their  own  attendants,  led  the  way.  My 
own  empty  palanquin  and  packages  following  in  the  rear 
made  quite  a  long  procession.  Among  the  companions  of 
my  journey  was  an  officer  attended  by  a  slave  carrying, 
in  a  neatly-made  wicker  cage,  a  pair  of  perfectly  white 
guinea-fowls  as  a  great  rarity,  and  a  present  from  the  chief 
of  a  distant  province  to  the  prince. 

The  morning  was  fine,  and  we  had  several  good  views  of 
the  "  city  of  a  thousand  towns,"  for  such  is  the  import  of 
the  name  of  the  capital  of  Madagascar,  as  we  approached 
from  the  east.  Antananarivo  stands  on  a  long  oval-shaped 
hill,  a  mile  and  a  half  or  more  in  length,  rising  four  or  five 
hundred  feet  higher  than  the  surrounding  country,  and  be- 
ing seven  thousand  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  Near 
the  centre,  and  on  the  highest  part  of  the  hill,  or,  as  the 
natives  express  it,  on  the  tampombohitra  (crown  of  the 
town),  stands  the  palace,  the  largest  and  loftiest  building  in 
the  place.  It  is  about  sixty  feet  high ;  the  walls  are  sur- 


CHAT.  xiir.          APPEAEANCE  OF  THE  CAPITAL.  381 

rounded  by  double  verandas  one  above  the  other ;  the  roof 
is  lofty  and  steep,  with  attic  windows  at  three  different  ele- 
vations. On  the  centre  of  the  top  of  the  house  there  is  a 
large  gilt  figure  of  an  eagle  with  outspread  wings.  Adjoin- 
ing the  northeast  angle  of  the  queen's  house  is  the  residence 
of  the  prince  royal,  her  son.  It  is  smaller  than  that  of  the 
queen,  but  in  other  respects  resembling  it,  and  also  sur- 
mounted by  a  golden  eagle. 

Stretching  along  to  the  north  and  the  south  of  these  roy- 
al residences,  and  forming  with  them  a  line  along  the  crest 
of  the  hill,  are  the  dwellings  of  other  members  of  the 
queen's  family  and  the  chief  officers  of  the  government, 
built  after  the  same  form  as  that  of  the  sovereign,  and  con- 
spicuous above  all  other  buildings  in  the  capital.  Below 
these  are  the  houses  of  the  other  inhabitants,  constructed 
almost  entirely  of  wood,  with  lofty  narrow  roofs  thatched 
with  rushes  or  grass,  and  ornamented  at  the  ends  with  the 
long  rafters  projecting  above  the  gables.  The  houses  along 
the  side  of  the  hill  are  built  on  artificially  leveled  terraces, 
from  twenty  to  forty  feet  wide.  The  sides  of  the  upper 
part  of  the  hill,  especially  the  northern  part,  are  covered 
with  houses ;  but  the  nature  of  the  ground  has  prevented 
any  order  or  regularity  in  their  arrangement.  They  are 
each  often  surrounded  by  a  low  mud  or  stone  wall,  forming 
a  sort  of  court-yard  to  the  houses  within  the  inclosure. 
The  lower  part  of  the  hill  is  composed  of  naked  broken 
rocks  of  granite  mingled  with  clay,  and  appears  in  strik- 
ing contrast  with  the  green  grass  or  rice-fields  and  water- 
courses of  the  valley  below.  The  uniform  shape  of  the 
houses,  the  plain  uncolored  wood  of  their  walls,  and  the 
dark  brown  thatch  gave  a  somewhat  sombre  aspect  to  the 
whole  capital,  which  might  easily  have  been  prevented  by 
coloring  the  walls  with  pink  or  yellow,  as  had  been  done 
with  good  effect  in  some  of  the  houses  of  the  adjacent 
country.  A  few  trees,  apparently  a  species  of  fig-tree,  were 


382  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CUAP.  xm. 

visible  here  and  there  in  the  higher  parts  of  the  city ;  and, 
though  pale  and  yellow  from  the  effects  of  the  sun  or  the 
dust,  served  to  relieve,  in  a  slight  degree,  the  sameness 
which  prevailed.  But,  notwithstanding  this  drawback,  it 
was  not  possible  to  gaze  on  the  city  before  me,  the  scene 
of  so  many  heart-stirring  and  soul-moving  events,  without 
deep  feeling,  more  especially  when,  just  before  crossing  a 
small  stream  at  the  bottom  of  the  hill,  we  passed  near  a 
large  pile  of  granite,  which  I  was  told  was  a  place  of  exe- 
cution. 

About  ten  o'clock  we  reached  the  first  houses,  and  still 
continued  to  ascend  by  a  wide  but  rugged  and  uneven 
road,  often  for  some  distance  over  the  naked  rock,  until  we 
reached  an  open  stone  gateway  near  one  of  the  palaces,  out- 
side of  which  there  appeared  to  be  a  guard  of  about  a  doz- 
en soldiers,  who  presented  arms  to  the  officers  as  we  pass- 
ed. We  continued  ascending  until  we  reached  the  crest  of 
.the  hill,  and  then  descended  toward  the  west.  I  noticed 
numbers  of  the  natives  standing  within  the  inclosures  on 
each  side  of  the  road,  and  gazing  with  apparent  pleasure  as 
we  passed.  The  way  now  became  exceedingly  intricate ; 
and,  after  proceeding  for  some  distance  over  a  path  along 
the  top  of  a  wall  built  up  from  below  from  a  depth  of 
twelve  or  fourteen  feet,  we  at  length  entered  a  spacious 
court-yard,  inclosing  three  neat  well-built  houses  each  two 
stories  high. 

On  reaching  the  most  northern  dwelling  my  palanquin 
was  set  down.  The  officers,  who  had  left  their  horses  on 
reaching  the  most  intricate  part  of  the  way,  came  to  me, 
and  one  of  them,  taking  me  by  the  hand  and  leading  me 
into  the  building,  told  me  that  was  the  house  the  queen 
had  appointed  for  my  residence,  and  then  very  cordially 
bade  me  welcome.  The  lower  story  of  the  house  contained 
two  rooms.  The  room  into  which  I  was  ushered  was  large 
and  high,  about  fourteen  feet  from  the  floor  to  the  ceiling ; 


CHAP.  xm.  RESIDENCE  PROVIDED  BY  THE  QUEEN.  388 

the  floor  and  the  walls  were  neatly  covered  with  matting. 
The  inner  room  was  somewhat  smaller,  the  floor  and  walls 
being  also  covered  with  clean  matting.  At  the  western 
end  was  a  window,  screened  by  a  white  muslin  curtain  or 
blind.  At  the  opposite  end  of  the  room  a  neat  four-post 
bed  stood,  on  which  mats  were  spread,  and  which  was  en- 
circled with  white  muslin  curtains.  On  one  side  of  the 
room  was  a  table  covered  with  a  cloth,  upon  which  were 
arranged  tumblers,  wine-glasses,  and  a  neat  water-jug,  and 
above  these  hung  a  looking-glass.  An  arm-chair  stood  in 
front  of  the  table,  and  four  other  chairs  were  placed  in  dif- 
ferent parts  of  the  room. 

Such  was  the  inviting  and  welcome  accommodation  pro- 
vided for  my  personal  comfort  during  the  period  of  my  visit. 
The  upper  story  of  my  residence  was  for  the  use  of  my  at- 
tendants, with  a  separate  house  in  the  court-yard  for  a  kitch- 
en. The  next  house  was  for  my  packages,  and  the  third 
house  was  occupied  by  a  native  Hova  family ;  but  I  was 
afterward  informed  that,  if  I  required  it,  that  also  should  be 
at  my  service.  Having  seen  me  installed  in  my  new  domi- 
cile, the  officers  retired,  stating  that  they  were  going  to  in- 
form, the  queen  of  my  arrival.  I  assured  them  of  my  deep 
sense  of  their  courtesy  and  attention,  and  begged  them  to 
thank  the  queen  for  her  kindness  in  sending  them,  and  for 
the  accommodation  so  kindly  provided  for  me. 

As  I  sat  in  my  nice,  clean,  comfortable-looking  room, 
feelings  of  gratitude  to  the  Almighty  almost  overwhelmed 
me,  when  I  looked  back  upon  the  difficulties  that  had  op- 
posed my  progress — the  merciful  manner  in  which  my  health 
had  been  preserved  through  the  fever  districts,  and  I  had 
been  brought  without  accident,  and  with  much  enjoyment, 
to  the  end  of  my  journey.  During  the  afternoon,  many 
persons  gathered  in  the  court-yard,  and  I  had  a  succession 
of  visitors  in  the  house.  Friends  seemed  as  if  they  could 
not  keep  away,  and  came  with  anxious  and  yet  joyous 


384  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xm. 

look,  just  to  offer  a  brief,  though  fervent  welcome,  and  then 
depart. 

In  the  evening  three  visitors  came,  with  whom  I  had  an 
earnest,  interesting,  and  to  me,  instructive  conversation ;  in 
the  course  of  which  I  gathered  much  important  information. 
Respecting  the  prince  royal,  I  learned  that  he  is  esteemed  by 
all  classes,  even  by  those  who  may  be  politically  opposed  to 
him,  as  intelligent,  straightforward,  and  sincere;  that  the 
people  in  general  are  fond  of  him  on  account  of  his  frank 
and  humane  disposition ;  that  the  queen  is  greatly  attached 
to  him,  and  has  publicly  declared  that  he  is  to  succeed  her 
as  sovereign,  and  that  if  his  life  be  spared  no  doubt  is  en- 
tertained of  his  succeeding  to  the  throne.  I  learned,  also, 
that  the  people  had  of  late  been  much  excited  and  unsettled 
by  reports  of  an  intended  invasion  of  the  French.  After 
these  friends  left  me,  others  who  had  been  waiting  entered, 
with  whom  I  spent  some  time  very  pleasantly ;  but,  per- 
ceiving that  I  was  fatigued,  they  did  not  remain  long. 

On  the  following  morning,  I  was  much  struck  with  the 
difference  between  the  climate  of  the  lower  parts  of  the 
country  and  this,  which  was  really  delightful.  The  morn- 
ings and  evenings  were  here  agreeably  cool,  the  thermome- 
ter on  this  occasion  standing  at  56°  at  eight  in  the  morning. 
About  noon  four  officers  of  the  palace  came  to  my  house. 
They  were  dressed  in  /lark-colored  silk  larnbas,  with  rich- 
patterned  borders.  On  entering,  they  said  they  had  been 
sent  by  the  queen  to  visit  me  on  my  arrival  at  the  capital. 
I  thanked  them,  and  asked  after  the  health  of  the  queen 
and  her  relatives.  They  answered  that  her  majesty  was 
well,  and  had  sent  them  to  inquire  how  I  was  after  my  long 
journey — whether  I  was  fatigued  or  ill.  They  then  inquired 
about  Queen  Victoria,  the  Prince  Consort,  and  the  royal 
family,  and  whether  England  was  prosperous,  and  there  was 
peace  in  Europe.  Soon  after  I  had  answered  these  ques- 
tions, they  said  the  queen  had  sent  me  a  present  of  an  ox, 


CHAP.  xm.         VISIT  FROM  THE  PRINCE  ROYAL.  385 

and  poultry,  and  other  provisions.  I  said  the  queen  was 
very  bountiful,  and  was,  indeed,  receiving  me  as  a  friend. 
When  they  rose  and  went  out  I  followed  them  into  the 
court-yard,  where  a  slave  was  holding  a  fine  fat  ox  by  a 
rope  fastened  to  his  horns.  There  was  also  a  number  of 
turkeys,  geese,  ducks,  and  large  fatted  fowls ;  a  huge  basket 
of  eggs,  containing  many  dozens,  and  several  large  baskets 
of  rice.  These  were  all  spread  out  upon  the  ground  before 
my  door,  the  ox  standing  at  one  end.  Pointing  to  them, 
the  officers  said  they  were  sent  to  me  by  the  queen.  I  again 
expressed  my  thanks,  and  they  soon  afterward  retired. 

The  people  with  me  soon  cleared  away  the  presents. 
The  basket  of  eggs  was  taken  into  the  upper  part  of  my 
own  house,  but  what  became  of  the  rest  I  never  knew.  I 
told  the  chief  who,  at  the  request  of  the  prince,  had  taken 
up  his  abode  in  the  upper  part  of  the  house  which  contain- 
ed my  packages  to  distribute  them  as  was  proper  and  cus- 
tomary on  such  occasions.  In  the  course  of  the  morning  I 
had  relieved  him  from  a  tormenting  tooth — the  second  time 
that  my  strength  and  skill  in  tooth-extracting  had  already 
been  in  requisition  here. 

In  the  course  of  the  day  I  had  received  information  that 
the  prince  royal  would  favor  me  with  a  visit ;  and  in  the 
evening,  punctually  at  the  time  fixed,  he  came,  accompa- 
nied by  a  friend.  Considering  his  age,  then  twenty-six,  his 
appearance  struck  me  as  juvenile  but  extremely  prepossess- 
ing, frank  and  open  in  his  bearing,  and  easy  in  his  man- 
ners. He  is  short  in  stature,  but  well  proportioned,  with 
broad  shoulders  and  ample  chest.  His  head  is  small,  his 
hair  jet  black  and  somewhat  curling ;  his  forehead  slightly 
retreating  and  round ;  his  eyes  small,  but  clear  and  pene- 
trating ;  his  features  somewhat  European  in  cast  and  form ; 
his  lips  full,  the  upper  covered  with  a  mustache,  the  lower 
projecting  from  the  overcrowding  of  his  teeth ;  his  nose 
aquiline,  and  his  chin  slightly  projecting.  He  wore  a  black 

BB  ' 


386  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  XHI. 

dress-coat  and  pantaloons,  gold-embroidered  velvet  waist- 
coat, and  white  cravat. 

Without  formality  or  reserve,  the  prince  evinced  no 
want  of  self-respect.  He  very  cordially  welcomed  me  to 
the  country,  and  in  a  short  time  we  all  seemed  to  be  per- 
fectly at  ease.  He  asked  after  my  home  and  family ;  and 
was  much  pleased  with  a  picture  of  my  house,  and  with 
portraits  of  some  members  of  my  family,  which  he  said  the 
princess,  his  wife,  would  like  to  see.  I  told  him  I  had  a 
small  present  which  my  wife  herself  had  worked,  and  which 
I  had  thought  of  offering  to  the  queen  or  some  member  of 
her  family.  He  said  the  princess,  his  wife,  would,  he  was 
sure,  be  much  pleased  with  it.  He  spoke  freely  of  the  ac- 
counts he  had  heard  of  England,  and  of  his  esteem  for  the 
English ;  of  his  high  estimate  of  the  conduct  of  the  English 
on  several  occasions  which  had  been  reported  to  him;  of 
the  character  of  their  laws,  especially  in  relation  to  human 
life,  which  he  said  they  appeared  to  regard  as  a  most  sacred 
thing,  not  to  be  carelessly  nor  recklessly  destroyed.  He 
spoke  of  the  English  having  often  interfered  to  protect  the 
weak  and  the  injured,  and  to  prevent  wrong. 

The  prince  also  spoke  of  the  Queen  of  England,  of  Prince 
Albert,  and  the  royal  children;  and  asked  about  the  results 
of  the  war  with  Eussia,  as  well  as  the  alliance  and  friend- 
ship between  England  and  France.  I  replied  that  since 
the  close  of  the  war  in  the  Crimea  there  had  been  peace 
throughout  Europe,  and  that  the  existing  relations  of  amity 
with  France  were  agreeable  to  the  people  of  England ;  add- 
ing that  the  English  and  French  were  such  near  neighbors, 
and  had  so  many  commercial  and  other  interests  in  com- 
mon, that  their  alliance  must  secure  the  most  important  ad- 
vantages to  both  countries ;  while  their  sincere  co-operation 
for  the  prosperity  of  other  nations  could  not  fail  to  prove  a 
benefit  to  the  whole  world.  In  the  course  of  our  conversa- 
tion the  prince  asked  what  was  the  meaning  of  protection,  as 


CHAP.  xni.      CONVERSATION  WITH  THE  PRINCE.  387 

in  the  case  of  one  nation  being  under  the  protection  of  an- 
other nation.  This  kind  of  protection  I  endeavored  to  ex- 
plain to  him  as  well  as  I  could  as  being  a  sort  of  modified 
sovereignty,  under  which  the  protecting  power,  while  leav- 
ing the  people  of  the  protected  state  to  be  governed  to  a 
certain  extent  by  their  own  rulers  or  forms  of  government, 
constituted  itself  the  supreme  authority,  actually  govern- 
ing both  rulers  and  people,  to  the  exclusion  of  all  other  for- 
eign influence. 

The  prince  inquired  with  much  earnestness  whether  I 
knew  if  there  was  any  truth  in  the  reports  of  an  intended 
invasion  of  Madagascar  by  the  French,  of  which  he  said 
there  were  rumors  at  that  time  in  the  capital.  I  told  him  I 
had  seen  something  about  such  a  thing  in  the  public  jour- 
nals of  Europe,  but  that  they  were  in  all  probability  only 
reports,  and  without  foundation ;  as  I  did  not  think  it  likely 
that  the  French  government  would  send  troops  to  fight 
against  them ;  and  that  I  was  sure  the  English  cherished 
toward  them  only  friendly  feelings.  I  told  him  there  were 
many  statements  in  the  newspapers  in  Europe,  which  we 
who  were  living  there  did  not  know  whether  to  believe  or 
not,  and  for  which  in  reality  there  was  sometimes  no  real 
foundation ;  adducing  as  an  instance  that  I  had  read  in  a 
newspaper  in  England  that  he  himself  had  become  a  Roman 
Catholic,  and  that  an  agent  from  himself  had  actually  been 
in  Rome  negotiating  for  Roman  Catholic  priests  to  be  sent 
to  his  country.  He  declared  there  was  no  truth  in  any 
such  statement ;  but  added,  that  there  was  a  Roman  Catho- 
lic priest  at  the  capital  who  had  tried  to  persuade  him  to 
become  a  Roman  Catholic,  and  had  given  to  the  princess, 
his  wife,  a  crucifix,  and  to  himself  a  silver  medal,  stating  to 
them  that  if  they  wore  these  on  their  breasts,  and  put  con- 
fidence in  the  Virgin  Mary,  the  princess  would  become  a 
mother.  "But,"  he  added,  "it  has  not  proved  true:  my 
wife  has  no  child."  He  then  opened  his  vest,  and  showed 


388  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xin. 

me  the  silver  medal  suspended  from  ids  neck  by  a  silken 
cord.  On  one  side  was  the  letter  M,  with  the  cross  inter- 
woven, and  surrounded  by  stars ;  on  the  other  side  was  a 
figure  of  the  Virgin  in  relief  standing  with  outstretched 
arms,  and  around  the  figure  were  these  words :  "  0  Marie  ! 
congue  sans  peche  /  priez  pour  nous,  qui  avons  recours  a  vous" 
At  the  bottom  was  the  date  1830.  The  prince  said  he  had 
no  wish  to  become  a  Roman  Catholic ;  but  I  could  not  help 
reflecting  that,  had  it  so  occurred  that  the  princess,  after 
wearing  the  crucifix,  had  become  a  mother,  this  might  have 
been  ascribed  to  the  influence  of  the  symbol,  or  the  efficacy 
of  the  Virgin's  intercession  ;  and  thus  a  very  different  effect 
might  have  been  produced  on  their  own  minds,  and  on 
those  of  many  of  the  people. 

We  conversed  a  long  time  on  a  number  of  subjects  not 
connected  with  religion,  in  some  of  which  the  prince  was 
deeply  interested,  and,  becoming  greatly  excited,  spoke  with 
a  degree  of  earnestness  and  animation  which,  considering 
the  quietness  of  his  manner  during  the  early  part  of  our 
interview,  I  had  scarcely  expected.  At  length  the  prince, 
accompanied  by  his  friend,  took  his  leave,  assuring  me  of 
the  gratitude  which  he  felt  for  my  visit  to  his  country,  and 
the  extreme  pleasure  he  had  derived  from  our  conversation. 

Two  companies  of  friends,  who  had  been  waiting  in  an 
adjacent  house  while  the  prince  was  with  me,  came  in  soon 
after  he  had  left.  They  had  many  questions  to  ask,  and 
many  messages  of  kind  and  cordial  welcome  to  deliver  from 
multitudes  of  others  who  had  not  been  able  to  come  per- 
sonally to  my  dwelling.  They  all  expressed  themselves 
gratified  by  the  cordial  welcome  I  had  received  from  the 
queen,  as  evinced  by  the  presents  which  had  been  sent  to 
me  during  the  day. 

On  the  following  morning,  one  of  my  bearers  having  in- 
formed me  that  they  wished  to  return,  I  directed  them  to 
come  to  me  all  together;  and  then,  reading  over  their  names, 


CHAP.  xm.     INTERVIEW  WITH  PRINCE  RAMONJA.  389 

I  paid  each  man  the  stipulated  amount,  expressing  my  grat- 
itude for  the  attention  and  care  they  had  manifested  during 
the  journey.  They  were  quite  delighted  with  the  sum  they 
received,  and  said  if,  when  I  wanted  to  return,  I  would  send 
them  word,  they  would  come  up  from  Tamatave,  to  carry 
me  down  to  the  coast.  I  thanked  them  for  the  offer  of  their 
services,  and  asked  them  what  they  were  going  to  do  with 
their  money.  Most  of  them  said  they  were  going  to  buy 
something  to  take  home ;  and  as  specimens  of  the  purchases 
they  made,  no  fewer  than  three  parties  came  during  the 
day  with  gold  earrings  of  native  manufacture,  to  ask  me  if 
they  were  really  gold. 

After  dismissing  the  bearers  of  my  palanquin  and  per- 
sonal baggage,  I  paid  the  bqarers  of  my  packages,  each  ac- 
cording to  the  distance  he  had  come,  and  they  all  appeared 
well  satisfied  with  the  sum  they  received.  I  also  presented 
a  small  sum  to  the  officers,  as  an  expression  of  my  sense  of 
their  attention  during  the  journey.  The  packages  had  not 
yet  all  arrived,  but  were  daily  expected. 

As  much  of  this  day  as  I  could  command,  I  devoted  to 
writing  letters  for  England  and  Mauritius,  to  send  by  my 
bearers  to  Tamatave,  and  also  to  packing  the  few  ferns  and 
plants  which  I  had  collected  on  my  journey.  In  the  even- 
ing I  had  a  very  pleasant  visit  from  the  prince  Ramonja  and 
one  of  his  relatives.  After  the  first  greeting,  he  almost  invol- 
untarily acknowledged  the  goodness  of  God  in  causing  us  to 
meet  -together.  He  then  conversed  with  much  earnestness 
but  gentleness  of  manner,  making  many  inquiries  after  the 
English  who  had  formerly  resided  at  the  capital,  and  the 
many  friends  in  England  of  whom  he  had  heard.  He  spoke 
also  of  the  afflictions  he  had  suffered,  and  his  bereavements 
in  the  loss  of  his  children  by  death.  He  inquired  much 
about  the  state  of  things  in  England,  and  expressed  his 
hopes  for  the  prosperity  of  Madagascar.  I  was  much  im- 
pressed with  his  intelligence  and  amiable  feeling.  During 


390  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xra. 

my  former  visits  I  had  heard  of  his  impaired  sight,  and  had 
now  the  pleasure  of  presenting  him  with  an  excellent  pair 
of  gold  spectacles,  which  a  friend  in  London  had  confided 
to  my  care  for  his  acceptance.  He  expressed  himself  much 
gratified  by  this  token  of  remembrance,  and  said  he  would 
write  to  the  donor.  The  next  morning  early,  the  chief 
whom  I  had  met  at  Tamatave  came  with  his  wife  and  a 
little  boy,  their  son,  to  pay  me  a  visit ;  bringing  the  accept- 
able present  of  a  bottle  of  fresh  milk,  which  they  afterward 
sent  every  morning  as  long  as  I  remained  at  the  capital. 

In  the  afternoon  of  the  same  day,  a  number  of  high  offi- 
cers from  the  palace  were  announced.  I  sent  to  bid  them 
welcome,  and  immediately  nine  officers  were  introduced  by 
the  queen's  secretary.  One  of  their  number,  having  been 
educated  in  England,  spoke  the  English  language  well. 
Two  or  three  were  of  the  thirteenth  honor,  the  rest  of  some- 
what lower  rank.  They  were  dressed  in  uniform  trowsers 
of  blue  cloth  with  gold-lace  up  the  sides,  and  wore  over 
their  shoulders  the  brown  and  purple  silk  lamba  or  scarf, 
with  yellow  borders.  Some  wore  heavy  gold  chains  round 
their  necks,  and  large  bracelets  of  the  same  material.  One 
of  them  wore  a  short  yellow  coat  with  slashed  sleeves. 
After  inquiries  respecting  my  health,  accommodation,  etc., 
they  said  they  had  been  sent  by  the  queen  to  inquire  the 
object  for  which  I  had  come  to  the  capital.  I  replied  that 
my  visit  was  what  I  had  stated  it  to  be  in  my  letter  to  the 
government  when  I  asked  permission  to  visit  the  capital, 
viz.,  a  visit  of  friendship,  not  for  purposes  of  commerce,  but 
of  friendship  only,  to  her  majesty  and  the  government ;  to 
talk  about  things  for  the  good  of  the  kingdom ;  and  that  I 
was  the  bearer  of  a  message  of  friendship  from  England  to 
the  government  of  Madagascar ;  that  as  there  had  been  re- 
ports that  the  English  were  not  friendly  to  the  Malagasy, 
and  that  English  ships  would  come  to  attack  their  country, 
the  Eight  Honorable  the  Earl  of  Clarendon,  the  chief  min- 


CHAP.  xm.      OFFICIAL  VISIT  FROM  THE  PALACE.  391 

ister  of  Queen  Victoria  for  foreign  affairs,  when  he  heard 
that  I  was  about  to  return  to  Madagascar,  to  visit  the  cap- 
ital, had  desired  me  to  tell  the  queen  and  government  of 
Madagascar,  that  all  reports  of  hostile  intentions  on  the  part 
of  the  English  were  untrue ;  that  the  English  government 
never  had  entertained  such  intentions,  and  had  no  such  in- 
tentions now ;  that  they  desired  the  prosperity  of  Madagas- 
car, and  to  be  friendly  with  the  queen  and  the  government, 
but  had  no  claim  or  wish  to  interfere  with  the  government 
or  internal  affairs  of  the  country.  That,  at  the  time  of  my 
departure,  the  Earl  of  Clarendon  had  been  sent  by  her  maj- 
esty, the  Queen  of  England,  to  Paris,  to  assist,  with  the  min- 
isters of  France  and  other  countries,  in  arranging  for  the 
peace  of  Europe  after  the  war  with  Eussia ;  but  that  he  had 
directed  a  letter  to  be  written  to  me  authorizing  the  state- 
ments I  had  made.  I  then  produced  and  read  the  letter  on 
the  subject,  which  I  had  received  a  few  days  previous  to 
my  departure  from  England.  I  also  delivered  a  letter  from 
his  Excellency  the  Governor  of  Mauritius  for  the  queen,  and 
said  I  had  some  presents  for  her  majesty,  which  I  should 
be  happy  to  deliver  as  soon  as  the  remainder  of  my  packages 
should  arrive.  The  chiefs  all  expressed  themselves  greatly 
pleased  with  the  friendly,  straightforward,  and  disinterested 
statements  of  the  letter  which  I  had  read ;  and,  after  farther 
conversation  on  different  subjects,  they  rose  to  return.  The 
rustling  of  the  stiff  silk  lambas,  and  the  jingling  of  the  large 
loose  gold  bracelets  on  the  wrists  of  some  of  the  chiefs,  as 
they  shook  hands  with  me  on  leaving,  produced  a  some- 
what novel  effect. 

During  my  former  visit  to  Tamatave,  I  had  had  much  in- 
timate, pleasant,  and  affectionate  intercourse  with  an  intel- 
ligent chief,  a  native  of  the  capital,  but  at  that  time  a  sort 
of  agent  for  the  prince.  Few  were  the  days  on  which  he 
did  not  visit  me ;  and  it  was  not  until  I  was  in  the  canoe 
which  was  to  take  me  to  the  ship  that  we  parted.  He  had 


392  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xm. 

been,  shortly  afterward,  attacked  with  the  fever,  and  had 
died  a  few  days  after  reaching  his  home.  He  was  a  fine 
noble-looking  man,  in  the  prime  of  life,  about  thirty  years 
of  age.  He  stood  six  feet  two  inches  high,  and  told  me  his 
father  was  two  inches  taller  than  himself.  On  the  same 
day,  soon  after  the  officers  from  the  palace  had  left  me,  I 
was  informed  that  the  family  of  this  chief  wished  to  visit 
me.  I  bade  them  welcome ;  and  the  father  of  him  whom  I 
used  to  call  my  tall  friend,  himself  an  erect,  noble-looking 
man,  between  fifty  and  sixty  years  of  age ;  his  mother,  a 
matronly  woman ;  the  widow  of  my  friend,  a  healthy,  inter- 
esting-looking woman  about  five  and  twenty,  and  five  chil- 
dren, all  entered  my  apartment.  The  father  seated  himself 
in  a  chair,  the  mother  and  the  widowed  daughter-in-law 
sat  on  the  ground ;  the  widow  carried  a  little  boy  in  her 
arms,  and  the  other  children  placed  themselves  on  the  floor 
around  her.  The  interpreter,  who  did  not  know  of  my 
former  acquaintance  with  the  chief,  said,  "Who  are  you?" 

The  venerable-looking  man  said,  "  I  am  Ea 's  father." 

He  then  looked  at  his  wife,  and  she  said,  "  I  am  his  mother ;" 
and,  pointing  to  the  young  woman  by  her  side,  she  said, 
"  This  is  his  widow,  and  these  are  his  children."  The  father 
then  said,  "We  have  come  with  a  small  present  in  token  of 
our  love,  for  our  son  loved  you,  and  spoke  much  of  you. 
We  shall  never  see  him  again,  but  seeing  you  seems  to 
bring  him  back  to  our  thoughts."  His  servants  then  brought 
in  the  present,  consisting  of  poultry,  eggs,  and  rice.  I  thank- 
ed him,  and  told  them  it  was  a  great  satisfaction  to  me  to  see 
them ;  that  I  had  mourned  when  I  heard  of  their  son's  death, 
but  hoped  they  were  comforted. 

I  had  taken  several  photographic  portraits  of  this  chief 
while  in  Tamatave,  and  after  conversing  a  short  time  I  took 
out  of  my  port-folio  a  small  likeness  of  my  friend,  and  handed 
it  to  the  father.  He  looked  at  it,  and  wept.  The  mother 
took  it,  pressed  it  to  her  lips  and  kissed  it,  for  some  minutes 


CHAP.  xiii.  PRESENTS  FROM  THE  PRINCE.  393 

weeping  silently,  but  profusely.  A  full-length  portrait  I 
handed  to  the  widow.  She  also  kissed  it  and  wept ;  then 
laid  it  down,  and  bent  over  her  baby  and  wept.  I  could 
not  restrain  my  own  feelings.  At  length  the  father  and 
mother  both  said,  "We  are  glad  to  see  you,  though  we 
weep ;  we  shall  never  see  him  again,  but  we  see  you.  You 
were  his  friend :  he  loved  you."  I  said,  "  Not  more  than  I 
loved  him."  Again  they  wept.  After  a  while  the  father 
said  they  must  leave ;  but,  as  they  lived  near,  they  would 
come  again.  I  said  I  should  always  be  glad  to  see  them ; 
and  on  my  asking  if  they  would  take  one  of  the  portraits, 
or  if  I  should  put  it  in  a  frame  for  them,  they  all  said,  "  Put 
it  in  a  frame  for  us.  It  will  preserve  it." 

Before  the  close  of  the  day,  three  officers  came  from  the 
prince  and  his  wife,  the  Princess  Eabodo,  the  daughter  of 
the  queen's  eldest  sister,  with  a  present  of  an  ox,  a  quantity 
of  poultry,  rice,  and  eggs ;  and  with  friendly  inquiries.  Af- 
ter conversing  some  time  they  retired,  with  my  acknowl- 
edgments of  the  kindness  of  the  prince  and  princess.  I  had 
scarcely  finished  my  dinner,  when  another  party  of  officers 
came  from  the  commander-in-chief,  one  of  the  highest  offi- 
cers of  the  government,  with  a  present  of  a  sheep,  poultry, 
etc.  The  officers  were  very  intelligent  and  interesting  men, 
and  I  was  much  gratified  with  the  intercourse  which  their 
visit  afforded.  In  the  course  of  the  evening  one  of  the 
officers  of  the  palace  came.  He  said  the  queen  had  ex- 
pressed herself  perfectly  satisfied  with  my  coming,  and 
pleased  with  the  communications  of  which  I  was  the  bear- 
er. She  said  it  was  only  like  the  English,  for  the  King  of 
England  had  been  the  first  to  make  friendship  with  Eada- 
ma,  and  that  Queen  Victoria  did  not  change.  The  officers 
had  also  all  expressed  themselves  pleased  with  these  com- 
munications. He  inquired  about  the  presents  I  had  brought. 
I  said  that,  besides  one  confided  to  my  care  by  the  Governor 
of  Mauritius,  I  had  a  few  articles,  but  was  afraid  they  would 


394  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xm. 

be  very  inadequate  when  compared  with  the  presents  which 
I  had  received.  I,  however,  made  out  the  best  list  I 
could. 

We  then  spoke  of  the  things  that  would  be  likely  to  in- 
terest the  chiefs  and  people,  and  be  desired  by  them.  Sev- 
eral of  the  people  had  already  applied  to  me  for  medicine. 
My  friend  said  some  of  the  chiefs  and  people  would  be  very 
glad  to  have  medicine,  and  he  should  wish  for  some  kinds 
himself;  but  I  had  better  not  say  any  thing  about  that  to 
the  queen,  as  one  of  her  favorite  officers  had  lately  died 
after  taking  some  medicine  given  him  by  a  foreign  resident. 
We  then  spoke  about  the  electric  telegraph;  but  he  said 
some  of  the  officers,  when  it  was  first  talked  about,  were 
very  much  interested,  but  the  queen  had  said  she  did  not 
care  about  it.  We  then  referred  to  photography.  He  said 
the  queen  and  some  of  the  people  had  a  superstitious  idea 
to  the  effect  that  if  their  likenesses  were  taken  they  would 
soon  die ;  that  the  likeness  resembled  the  spirit  of  a  person, 
and  when  that  was  gone  said,  "Why  what  is  there  left?" 
I  began  to  think  "  Othello's  occupation's  gone ;"  but  I  re- 
ferred to  the  likenesses  I  had  brought  with  me  of  persons 
still  living,  and  my  visitor  acknowledged  that  it  was  only 
a  superstitious  idea,  and  said  he  should  like  to  have  his 
own  likeness  taken,  and  would  show  it  to  the  queen.  His 
opinion  of  the  dignity  of  photography  seemed  also  to  be  a 
little  changed  when  I  told  him  there  was  a  photographic 
society  in  England,  of  which  our  own  sovereign  Queen 
Victoria  and  Prince  Albert  were  the  patrons,  and  persons 
of  rank  and  title  members.  He  then  talked  about  educa- 
tion among  the  people,  which  is  here  carried  on  only  in  the 
family  circle.  At  length  he  left  me,  and  I  promised  him 
some  medicine  which  he  had  mentioned. 

Late  as  it  was,  two  kind  friendly  families  came  to  visit 
and  talk  with  me,  bringing,  as  usual,  their  presents.  I  did 
not  slight  their  kindness  by  declining  their  gifts;  but  I 


CHAP.  xin.         EXCUKSION  INTO  THE  COUNTRY.  395 

sent  the  presents  I  received  to  other  persons  to  be  taken 
care  of. 

In  the  forenoon  of  the  following  day  three  young  officers 
of  the  palace  came  to  say  that  they  had  been  appointed  by 
the  queen  to  accompany  me  should  I  wish  to  ride  out  into 
the  country.  I  thanked  the  queen,  and  said  I  should  be 
glad  to  accompany  them  in  the  afternoon.  About  two 
o'clock  a  messenger  came  to  say  that  the  prince  would  ac- 
company me,  and  that  the  present  was  better  than  a  later 
hour.  A  palanquin  with  bearers  was  also  provided  for  my 
use. 

I  set  out  soon  afterward  with  the  three  young  officers  on 
horseback.  Many  of  the  people  appeared  on  the  walls  and 
terraces  of  the  houses  as  we  passed  along.  Toward  the  sub- 
urbs we  overtook  the  prince,  attended  by  a  number  of  offi- 
cers and  surrounded  by  crowds  of  people.  I  alighted  at 
the  place  where  he  was  standing,  which  was  a  high  part  of 
the  road  overlooking  the  large  parade-ground  toward  the 
west.  A  number  of  large  cannons  on  wooden  carriages 
were  ranged  along  the  edge  of  the  road.  I  saw  by  the 
marks  they  were  English  guns.  The  greeting  of  the  prince 
was  cordial ;  and  when  he  entered  his  palanquin  he  ordered 
the  bearers  of  mine  to  keep  in  advance,  but  his  own  palan- 
quin was  soon  alongside,  and  whenever  the  road  was  suffi- 
ciently wide  we  were  near  enough  to  converse  with  ease. 

"We  were  altogether  quite  a  large  party.  There  were 
three  palanquins,  a  young  chief  belonging  to  the  queen's 
family  being  with  the  prince.  There  were  also  six  officers 
on  horseback,  besides  many  on  foot,  with  their  attendants 
and  the  bearers.  We  proceeded  in  a  northerly  direction, 
by  Andohalo,  one  of  the  places  at  which  public  assemblies 
are  convened,  and  past  a  spot  where  what  was  once  a  chapel 
is  now  a  prison ;  and  shortly  afterward  turned  to  the  west- 
ward, passing  an  artificial  lake  or  pond,  with  an  island  in 
the  centre,  and  a  bridge  or  causeway  connecting  the  island 


396  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  xin. 

with  the  shore.  In  the  suburb  we  passed  through  a  mar- 
ket, where  the  goods  in  great  variety  were  spread  on  the 
ground ;  and  in  about  half  an  hour  left  the  house,  and  fol- 
lowed the  road  across  the  low  flat  ground  covered  with  rice- 
fields. 

The  people  as  we  passed  along  came  to  the  road  side  to 
salute  the  prince.  Every  person  in  the  road  moved  to  the 
side  as  the  prince  approached,  and  the  people  in  the  fields 
or  inclosures  hastened  to  the  road  as  he  passed.  All  saluted 
him  with,  "May  you  live,  sovereign  or  master,"  and  the 
homage  seemed  to  be  very  cordially  rendered.  I  inferred 
somewhat  of  the  habits  of  the  prince  from  a  conversation 
among  the  officers,  who  observed  that  he  had  since  the 
morning  personally  visited  between  twenty  and  thirty 
houses  for  the  purpose  of  advising  and  directing  the  people, 
listening  to  their  requests  or  composing  differences,  etc.,  and 
I  did  not  wonder  at  his  being  so  popular  among  them. 

At  length  we  reached  a  bridge  called  Ambaniala,  stretch- 
ing across  a  considerable  stream.  The  bridge  consisted  of 
a  number  of  slabs  of  primitive  rock,  eight  or  ten  feet  long 
and  four  or  five  feet  wide,  laid  horizontally  on  piles  of 
stones.  Continuing  our  way  partly  along  the  border  of  the 
stream,  we  passed  through  several  villages  and  came  to  an- 
other bridge,  Ilavatehezana,  literally  long  bridge.  I  was  as- 
tonished at  the  structure,  rude  as  it  was,  when  informed 
that  it  was  all  entirely  native  workmanship.  The  bridge, 
a  series  of  arches  of  different  sizes,  stretched  across  the  Riv- 
er Andranomiery,  a  shallow,  but  smooth  and  flowing  stream, 
forty  yards  across.  The  arches,  eleven  in  number,  were 
some  of  them  fifteen  feet  in  the  centre  of  the  arch  above 
the  water.  Others  were  narrower  and  lower.  On  alight- 
ing from  the  palanquins  the  prince  offered  me  his  arm,  and 
we  walked  together  to  the  bridge,  which  was  about  five  feet 
wide  on  the  top,  and  used  only  by  foot-passengers. 

The  prince  and  two  of  his  aids-de-camp  spoke  English  so 


CHAP.  xin.  THE  SILVER  SPEAR,  OR  "HATER  OF  LIES."       397 

as  to  make  themselves  generally  understood.  From  them 
I  learned  that  the  bridge  was  entirely  planned  and  built  by 
natives,  and  had  been  finished  about  three  years.  They 
said  they  had  books  about  building  bridges,  and  followed 
the  directions  in  the  books  as  far  as  they  could.  The  stones 
were  cemented  with  clay,  but  I  noticed  that  in  some  places 
near  the  water-line  the  cement  was  washed  away ;  and  they 
said  that  during  the  rainy  season  there  was  a  great  body  of 
water. 

Leaving  the  bridge,  we  journeyed  westward  through  sev- 
eral villages,  and  some  extensive  rice-fields,  then  lying  fal- 
low. The  soil  of  these  fields  was  a  loose  red  sand,  with  stiff 
gray  clay.  The  grounds  were  well  dug,  and  the  spadefuls 
of  soil  piled  up  like  newly-made  bricks  in  a  brick-field,  that 
it  might  be  penetrated  with  sun  and  wind,  and  pulverized 
before  receiving  the  water.  At  length  we  reached  another 
bridge,  spanning  a  river  nearly  as  wide  as  that  which  we 
had  left.  This  bridge  was  a  more  compact  and  solid  struc- 
ture than  the  former,  but  also  without  mortar.  On  the 
western  side  of  this  bridge  is  the  village  of  Ambaniana ; 
and,  this  being  market-day,  multitudes  of  the  people  were 
returning  over  the  bridge.  The  village  of  Anosizato — lit- 
erally, a  hundred  islands — lying  a  short  distance  to  the  south- 
ward, looked  attractive,  but  we  now  turned  toward  the  cap- 
ital. 

The  prince  and  his  companions  were  exceedingly  com- 
municative during  the  ride,  pointing  out  the  distant  villages, 
and  mentioning  their  names.  On  our  way  we  passed  a  num- 
ber of  officers,  one  of  whom  carried  a  large  broad-headed 
silver  spear.  The  whole  of  our  party  saluted  the  spear  as 
it  was  carried  past,  and  the  prince  afterward  told  me  it  was 
Tsitialainga,  the  hater  of  lies,  the  revealer  of  crimes,  the  de- 
tector of  criminals,  and  an  emblem  of  power  in  Madagascar. 
The  officer  who  bore  it  was  one  of  the  queen's  heralds  on  an 
errand  of  justice.  Whenever  anyone  is  accused  of  a  crime 


398  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xm. 

by  Tsitialainga,  this  spear  is  planted  in  the  doorway ;  and 
no  one  dares  to  leave  the  house  until  it  is  removed. 

The  prince  appeared  much  interested  in  learning  the 
names  and  properties  of  some  few  of  the  plants  we  saw  on 
our  route.  Soon  after  five  o'clock  we  reached  Isoaierana, 
a  spacious  building,  which  the  prince  had  more  than  once 
pointed  out  during  our  ride,  telling  me  it  had  been  built  by 
the  late  king  Kadama.  An  immense  hill  had  been  removed 
to  provide  a  site  for  this  building,  which  we  approached  by 
passing  through  a  level  space  four  or  five  hundred  yards 
wide.  The  prince  then  asked  if  I  would  enter;  and,  alight- 
ing from  the  palanquin  at  one  of  the  principal  entrances, 
he  took  my  arm,  and  led  me  in,  until  we  reached  a  large 
room  nearly  a  hundred  feet  long  and  forty  feet  wide,  ap- 
parently occupying  the  entire  centre  of  the  building.  It 
was  a  splendid  room,  though  too  low  to  be  well  proportion- 
ed. The  walls  were  wainscoted,  the  floor  of  native  wood 
beautifully  polished,  and  inlaid  in  large  square  panels  or 
mosaics,  some  kinds  richly  colored,  and  varying  almost 
through  every  shade,  from  ebony  to  maple.  It  is  said 
there  are  forty  rooms  on  the  ground-floor  of  this  building, 
besides  chambers  or  attics ;  but  as  the  evening  was  advanc- 
ing, we  did  not  prolong  our  stay.  All  the  servants  in  the 
house  retired  to  a  distance  as  we  entered ;  but,  as  we  de- 
parted, they  gathered  outside,  and  offered  their  salutations 
to  the  prince. 

This  remarkable  building  is  altogether  of  wood,  the  walls 
outside  covered  with  diagonal  panels,  the  sides  screened 
with  double  verandas,  and  the  roof  covered  with  shingles. 
The  lower  veranda  is  protected  by  an  iron  railing,  and 
also  by  an  iron  chain  on  low  posts,  at  a  short  distance  from 
the  house.  Considering  the  state  of  civilization  in  the  coun- 
try at  the  time  of  its  erection,  Isoaierana  is  an  astonishing 
building,  and  would  be  a  splendid  mansion  had  it  but  been 
higher.  It  was  built  about  thirty  years  ago,  as  a  sort  of 


CHAP.  xm.  PLACES  OF  EXECUTION.  399 

suburban  residence,  by  Eadama,  under  the  direction  of  M. 
Le  Gros,  a  French  resident  at  the  capital.  The  labor  of  pro- 
curing timber  from  the  forest  fifty  miles  distant  must  have 
been  immense ;  and  it  is  said  that  about  sixty  carpenters 
were  employed  four  years  on  the  works. 

After  we  left  the  domain  the  people  crowded  the  road, 
and  saluted  the  prince  as  he  passed.  On  approaching  the 
capital  I  observed  that  the  south  end  of  the  hill  on  which 
it  stands  is  rocky,  and  almost  destitute  of  houses.  The 
prince  pointed  out  a  part  of  the  naked  rock,  which  he 
said  was  Ambohipotsi,  which  I  knew  to  be  the  common 
place  of  execution,  and  where  several  of  the  Christians  had 
been  put  to  death.  It  was  three  hundred  or  four  hundred 
feet  above  the  path.  Shortly  afterward  we  passed  within 
sight  of  the  pile  of  granite  rock,  three  hundred  feet  high, 
from  which  criminals  are  hurled  and  dashed  to  pieces  on 
the  rocky  fragments  below. 

The  sun  had  set  when  we  re-entered  the  capital,  and, 
passing  for  a  long  distance  through  the  labyrinth  of  streets, 
we  halted.  The  prince  alighted  at  the  house  of  one  of  hi§ 
officers,  and  wished  me  good-night.  I  re-entered  my  palan- 
quin and,  going  a  few  yards  farther,  was  put  down  at  my 
own  door  soon  after  six  o'clock,  much  pleased  with  the  op- 
portunity I  had  enjoyed  of  viewing  this  comparatively  pop- 
ulous and  well-cultivated  portion  of  the  country,  and  deep- 
ly affected  by  the  associations  connected  with  some  of  the 
objects  I  had  beheld. 

A  number  of  friends  came  in  the  evening,  and  the  con- 
versation naturally  turned  upon  the  events  of  recent  years, 
and  the  scenes  which  had  been  witnessed  on  the  spots  I  had 
passed  during  the  day.  The  statements  to  which  I  listened 
were  deeply  affecting.  My  friends  had  also  many  ques- 
tions to  ask  respecting  the  customs  of  my  own  and  other 
countries,  especially  our  mode  of  conducting  funerals,  etc. 

The  next  day  was  the  Sabbath.    I  had  but  few  visitors, 


400  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xni. 

and  was  glad  to  secure  more  than  usual  retirement  and 
quiet,  until  the  evening,  when  one  of  the  officers  of  the  pal- 
ace came  and  took  tea  with  me,  talking  about  many  things 
for  the  good  of  the  kingdom.  After  he  had  left  a  num- 
ber of  friends  came,  among  them  the  widow  of  a  Christian 
friend  whom  I  had  known  in  Tamatave  in  1854,  but  who 
had  died  of  fever.  Also  the  widows  and  orphans  of  those 
who  had  been  put  to  death  for  their  faith.  They  were 
plain,  quiet,  sorrowful  women,  scarcely  past  middle  age. 
One  of  the  children,  to  whom  I  promised  some  medicine, 
was  much  afflicted.  It  was  a  very  affecting  meeting.  I 
spoke  kindly  to  them,  until  at  length  they  rose  and  retired 
with  their  friends. 

Two  days  after  this  I  prepared  for  another  excursion  into 
the  country,  having  been  invited  to  accompany  the  prince 
and  his  wife,  the  Princess  Eabodo,  on  a  visit  to  Mahazoari- 
vo,  the  country-house  of  the  late  Eadama.  A  little  before 
noon  a  messenger  came  to  say  that  the  prince  and  princess 
were  about  to  leave  the  palace,  and  I  was  to  follow  the  mes- 
senger. As  we  approached  the  palace  they  were  descend- 
ing toward  the  road.  A  friendly  officer  of  the  palace  met 
me  and  told  me  that,  as  this  would  be  my  first  public  rec- 
ognition by  the  members  of  the  queen's  family,  I  had  better 
offer  a  hasina,  or  gift  of  a  dollar,  as  no  one  approaches  the 
representative  of  the  queen  without  it.  The  avenue  lead- 
ing to  the  palace  gate  was  completely  crowded.  Two  offi- 
cers of  high  rank,  in  rich  uniform,  approached,  and  soon  aft- 
er the  prince,  in  an  open  palanquin.  He  shook  hands  with 
me  very  cordially,  and  in  a  few  minutes  the  princess,  in  an 
open  palanquin,  came  up.  She  held  out  her  fyand  and  bade 
me  welcome,  saying  the  queen  was  glad  I  was  going  with 
them.  I  acknowledged  her  kindness,  and  then  presented  to 
the  chief  officer  attending  her  the  hasina.  The  officer  im- 
mediately exclaimed,  "  He  makes  hasina  to  the  queen !"  and 
the  prince  and  princess  appeared  pleased.  An  officer  then 


CHAP.  xin.  PROCESSION  OF  THE  PRINCE.  401 

directed  my  bearers  to  their  place  in  the  procession,  and  we 
proceeded  down  the  eastern  side  of  the  hill.  Judging  from 
the  multitudes  of  the  people,  and  the  general  excitement, 
this  must  have  been  quite  a  holiday. 

The  procession  occupied  full  half  a  mile.  There  were  a 
dozen  or  more  officers  on  horseback,  and  the  horses,  though 
not  well  groomed,  were  strong  and  spirited.  There  were 
fourteen  palanquins,  ornamented  with  variously-colored 
drapery.  In  one  of  these,  a  beautiful  youth,  the  son  of  the 
Prince  Eamboasalama,  attracted  my  attention.  When  the 
procession  moved,  eight  or  ten  officers  on  horseback  led  the 
way,  and  others  rode  by  the  side  of  the  palanquins.  Then 
came  the  officers  of  the  palace,  in  palanquins  or  on  foot ; 
and  after  these  the  prince's  band  of  nineteen  musicians,  in- 
cluding five  clarionets,  five  flutes  and  fifes,  one  bassoon, 
four  bugles,  a  bass  and  a  smaller  drum,  and  a  triangle. 
The  musicians  were  preceded  and  followed  by  two  officers 
with  drawn  swords.  Then  came  the  prince's  palanquin, 
with  three  or  four  officers  walking  on  each  side  with  drawn 
swords.  Next  to  the  prince  came  the  princess,  her  palan- 
quin covered  with  scarlet  cloth,  ornamented  with  gold-lace, 
and  bordered  with  rich  gold  fringe,  like  that  used  for  offi- 
cers' epaulets,  and  the  inside  lined  with  pink  satin.  By  the 
side  of  the  princess  a  man  carried  a  large  umbrella  of  pink 
silk,  surmounted  with  a  gilt  ball ;  and  immediately  behind 
her  palanquin,  a  dozen  or  more  female  slaves  followed, 
clothed  in  broad-striped  blue  and  white  cotton  lambas.  A 
daughter  of  Prince  Eamonja,  but  adopted  by  the  princess, 
an  interesting  girl  about  seventeen,  occupied  the  next  pa- 
lanquin. Three  other  palanquins  followed  with  the  ladies 
in  waiting,  or  attendants  on  the  princess.  After  them  a 
few  officers,  and  then  the  crowd. 

The  whole  road,  from  some  distance  before  the  horses  in 
front,  to  two  or  three  hundred  yards  after  the  last  palanquin, 
was  so  crowded  that  it  was  difficult  to  proceed.  The  prince, 

Co 


402  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CIIAP.  xiii. 

who  wore  a  black  coat  witli  a  silver  star,  had  a  broad  silk 
band  or  ribbon  of  red  and  green  across  his  breast  beneath 
his  vest,  with  the  gold-fringed  ends  hanging  down  by  his 
side.  The  princess  wore  a  blue  dress  made  in  the  Euro- 
pean style,  trimmed  with  scarlet  velvet,  and  ornamented 
with  rows  of  small  gilt  buttons,  a  pink  satin  bonnet  with 
artificial  flowers,  a  veil,  and  lace  tippet.  One  of  the  ladies 
wore  a  curious  native  or  Arabic  headdress;  the  others 
were  in  European  costume ;  all  were  decorated  with  a  pro- 
fusion of  gold  chains  and  jewelry;  and  all  rode  in  open 
palanquins.  A  few  of  the  officers  were  in  blue  uniform ;  a 
number  wore  scarlet  trowsers,  with  the  white  flowing  lamba 
bordered  with  the  akotso  or  five  broad  stripes,  while  the 
attendants,  and  the  crowds  who  followed  or  scattered  them- 
selves by  the  side  of  the  procession,  seemed  all  to  wear  their 
holiday  dress. 

The  day  was  fine,  the  scene  bright,  with  a  light  cool 
breeze.  The  union  of  the  different  modes  of  travel  charac- 
teristic of  different  countries,  the  officers  on  horseback  as  in 
Europe,  the  princes  in  palanquins  as  in  Asia;  the  light, 
loose,  flowing,  and  gaily-colored  drapery  of  the  East,  inter- 
mingled with  the  stiff  quiet-toned  apparel  of  the  West ;  the 
music  of  Europe,  and  the  language  of  Madagascar,  with  the 
lively  and  jocund  air  of  the  throng:  and  then  the  moving 
along  amid  objects  new  and  attractive ;  the  massive  rocky 
base  of  the  capital,  the  houses  and  their  inhabitants  on  one 
side;  and  the  wide  cultivated  plain,  diversified  by  hills 
surmounted  with  villages,  on  the  other ;  all  these  combined 
to  afford  new  sources  of  pleasure  and  excitement. 

Having  proceeded  by  a  somewhat  circuitous  route  from 
the  north  to  the  east  side  of  the  capital,  the  road  led  to 
within  a  few  hundred  yards  of  the  palace,  where  a  large 
scarlet  umbrella  and  a  number  of  figures  were  seen  on  the 
terrace  in  front  of  the  palace.  The  procession  halted,  all 
hats  were  taken  off,  and  the  band  played  the  Malagasy 


CHAP.  xiii.  HOMAGE  WITH  THE  PRODUCE  OF  THE  SOIL.    403 

"  God  save  the  queen,"  a  not  unpleasing  native  tune.  The 
queen  had  come  out  upon  the  terrace  to  see  the  prince  and 
princess  pass.  In  a  few  minutes  the  scarlet  umbrella  dis- 
appeared, and  the  procession  as  represented  in  the  frontis- 
piece moved  on.  The  arrangement  which  placed  me  during 
the  day  next  to  the  queen's  secretary,  who,  having  been 
educated  in  England,  speaks  English  well,  was  to  me  pe- 
culiarly gratifying,  as  he  kindly  pointed  out  and  explained 
several  places  and  objects  of  interest  observed  on  our  way. 

As  we  passed  the  south  end  of  the  capital  a  number  of 
soldiers  appeared  on  a  rising  ground.  I  was  told  they  were 
the  artillery.  We  also  saw  over  a  hollow  between  two 
mountains,  and  at  a  considerable  distance,  the  wide  ground 
at  Isoaierana,  where  a  large  body  of  men,  apparently  sev- 
eral thousands,  was  assembled.  I  was  told  they  were  the 
troops  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  capital,  who  are  exercised 
together  once  a  fortnight.  On  reaching  the  village  of  An- 
drondra,  the  prince  and  princess,  accompanied  by  their  fol- 
lowers, looked  over  a  tract  of  rice-ground  which  the  queen 
had  recently  given  to  them.  This  had  been  one  of  the  ob- 
jects  of  the  excursion,  and,  as  soon  as  it  was  accomplished, 
we  turned  to  the  eastward,  passing  along  a  road  between 
low,  flat  rice-fields.  As  we  approached  the  villages,  I  fre- 
quently saw  a  number  of  the  inhabitants  coming  out  of  their 
gardens  with  a  bundle  of  sugar-canes  freshly  broken  off,  or 
a  small  basket  of  manioc  roots  or  sweet  potatoes  just  dug 
up,  and,  running  in  eager  haste  to  the  side  of  the  road,  wait- 
ing there,  often  spade  in  hand,  until  the  prince  and  princess 
came  up,  when  they  presented  to  them  the  produce  of  the 
ground,  and  offered  their  salutations — an  interesting  and 
primitive  species  of  homage.  The  prince  acknowledged 
their  gifts,  which  were  delivered  to  his  followers  as  the  par- 
ty moved  along. 

At  length  we  reached  Mahazoarivo,  the  country  residence 
of  the  late  king.  "While  passing  under  the  gateway  leading 


404   .  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xm. 

to  the  grounds,  all  took  off  their  hats.  We  first  stopped  to 
look  at  a  stone  house,  of  rather  small  dimensions,  in  course 
of  erection,  and  then  passed  along  through  avenues  of  ba- 
nanas and  vines.  The  latter  were  planted  in  circular  holes, 
about  two  yards  across,  and  eighteen  inches  or  two  feet 
deep,  which  mode,  I  was  told,  prevented  their  being  burned 
up  in  the  hot  season.  They  appeared  to  require  pruning, 
but  were  said  to  bear  good  grapes.  In  about  ten  minutes 
we  reached  the  house,  a  moderate-sized  but  well-built  cot- 
tage, encircled  with  a  wide  veranda,  and  standing  on  the 
margin  of  a  piece  of  water  thronged  with  water-fowl.  On 
alighting,  the  officers  and  others  formed  a  circle  in  front  of 
the  house.  The  prince  entered  the  circle,  and,  when  the 
princess  arrived,  he  assisted  her  from  her  palanquin,  and. 
drawing  her  arm  within  his  own,  they  entered  the  house  to- 
gether, when  the  prince,  turning  round,  invited  the  company 
to  enter. 

On  again  presenting  myself  before  the  prince  and  prin- 
cess, and  acknowledging  the  pleasure  which  the  excursion 
had  afforded  me,  they  said  the  queen  had  told  them  to  ask 
me  to  join  them,  in  order  that  I  might  see  the  country. 
They  then  made  many  inquiries  about  England,  especially 
about  the  Queen  and  Prince  Albert,  how  many  children 
they  had,  their  various  ages,  etc. ;  and  both,  but  especially 
the  princess,  expressed  much  interest  when  I  mentioned  the 
rumor  that  the  Princess  Koyal  of  England  was  to  be  con- 
nected by  marriage  with  the  royal  family  of  Prussia.  Then 
they  asked  about  the  war — how  many  troops  had  been  en- 
gaged, how  many  killed,  whether  it  was  thought  that  peace 
would  continue,  and  whether  the  people  of  England  were 
pleased  with  it,  etc.  The  princess  conversed  with  gentle- 
ness and  affability.  I  noticed,  while  they  were  standing  to- 
gether, that,  if  not  slightly  taller,  she  was  the  senior  of  the 
prince.  There  was  a  table  in  the  room  spread  with  sweet- 
meats, biscuits,  and  fruit,  and  with  silver  plates  and  knives, 


CHAP.  xni.  REFRESHMENTS  AND  MUSIC.  405 

and  silver  forks.  The  princess  moved  to  the  table,  and  asked 
if  I  would  take  some  fruit,  apologizing  for  the  smallness  of 
the  supply,  and  intimating  that  they  were  merely  halting  to 
rest.  The  bananas,  however,  were  very  fine.  She  asked 
me  if  we  had  any  in  England.  I  told  her  only  a  few,  as 
they  would  not  grow  with  us  except  in  houses  of  glass.  I 
told  her  I  had  seen  some  of  Queen  Victoria's  bananas  grow- 
ing in  her  glass-house  at  Kew,  which  I  endeavored  to  de- 
scribe, and  said  that,  although  our  pine-apples,  peaches, 
grapes,  and  some  other  kinds  of  fruit  were  very  fine,  the 
bananas  were  not  so  good  as  those  of  Madagascar,  which 
were  certainly  finer  than  any  I  had  seen  in  the  South  Sea 
Islands,  Mauritius,  or  Ceylon.  They  then  talked  about  mu- 
sic, asking  if  Queen  Victoria  was  fond  of  music.  The  prince 
then  ordered  his  band  outside  the  door  to  play  the  English 
"God  save  the  Queen,"  which,  considering  the  place  and  the 
performers,  was  well  executed ;  the  musicians  of  Madagas- 
car having  been  originally  taught  during  two  years'  resi- 
dence in  Mauritius,  by  the  band-master  of  one  of  the  En- 
glish regiments  there.  This  well-known  tune  was  to  me  so 
unexpected,  that  I  was  more  affected  than  I  should  other- 
wise have  supposed  would  have  been  the  case.  "  Rule  Bri- 
tannia" was  the  next  tune  played;  then  the  "Grenadiers' 
March,"  and  others  equally  familiar. 

The  prince  and  princess  asked  whether  Queen  Victoria 
ever  had  dancing  in  her  palace ;  and,  thanks  to  some  in- 
formation gathered  from  the  court  newsman,  and  remem- 
bered at  the  time,  I  was  able  to  answer  with  tolerable  pre- 
cision ;  and  added  that  music,  as  an  element  of  civilization, 
was  more  cultivated  in  England  than  formerly.  They  ask- 
ed if  I  could  dance.  I  replied  in  the  negative,  and  added 
that  the  society  with  which  I  associated  in  England  did  not 
practice  dancing.  A  walk  in  the  garden  was  then  pro- 
posed. The  prince  was  accompanied  by  the  princess.  The 
queen's  secretary  offered  his  arm  to  the  daughter  of  Prince 


406  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xui. 

Ramonja;  and  it  devolved  on  me,  as  next  to  the  secretary, 
to  offer  mine  to  the  first  of  the  court  ladies,  a  richly-dressed 
and  portly  dame.  I  was  pleased  with  a  fine  palmyra-tree, 
and  some  good  specimens  of  rare  indigenous  plants,  and 
said  Madagascar  was  rich  in  curious  and  valuable  vegeta- 
ble productions.  My  companion  did  not  understand  En- 
glish, and  I  expressed  my  regret  that  I  did  not  speak  Mala- 
gasy. Some  of  the  company  remarked  that  it  was  very 
difficult  to  speak  English ;  and,  on  my  congratulating  the 
prince  on  his  attainments  and  urging  him  to  persevere,  that, 
in  the  event  of  his  ever  visiting  England,  he  might  be  able 
to  converse  with  those  he  would  meet  with,  the  princess 
laughed  heartily  at  the  idea  of  his  visiting  England.  He 
said  he  understood  much  of  what  I  said,  as  he  remember- 
ed the  meaning  of  words  when  he  heard  them,  though  he 
could  not  recollect  the  words  when  he  wanted  to  speak. 
They  then  again  referred  to  the  rumors  of  a  hostile  expedi- 
tion from  France,  and  asked  if  I  knew  any  thing  about  it. 
I  said  I  did  not  think  it  likely,  as  the  Emperor  of  the  French 
was  regarded  as  a  just  and  equitable  sovereign,  and  the  En- 
glish and  the  French  were  very  friendly. 

We  now  returned  to  the  house,  where  I  was  again  di- 
rected to  a  seat  by  the  side  of  the  officer  who  spoke  En- 
glish, and  sat  next  to  the  princess.  I  noticed  that  both  the 
prince  and  princess  carried  a  small  gold  cylindrical  snuff- 
box, having  the  stopper  or  lid  attached  by  a  small  gold 
chain.  The  first  officer  had  a  very  handsome  silver  snuff- 
box, studded  with  precious  stones. 

Dancing  now  commenced.  Four  of  the  prince's  aids-de- 
camp led  out  the  daughter  of  Prince  Ramonja  and  the  three 
court  ladies.  The  princess  more  than  once  asked  what  I 
thought  of  their  dancing.  I  replied  that  they  appeared  to 
dance  with  ease.  Many  questions  were  put  respecting  the 
kind  of  dances  which  Queen  Victoria  had  in  her  palace, 
of  which  I  was  compelled  to  acknowledge  my  ignorance. 


CHAP.  xin.        DANCING  BEFORE  THE  PRINCESS.  407 

They  asked,  as  I  had  been  in  France  and  Italy,  which  mu- 
sic was  the  best.  I  told  them  some  kinds  in  both  countries 
were  very  good,  and  so  was  the  music  of  Germany,  in  some 
respects,  better  than  either.  They  asked  about  the  singing 
and  dancing  of  these  countries,  to  which  I  replied  that  there 
was  much  feeling  in  the  singing  of  the  Italians,  and  that 
the  dancing  of  the  Italian  peasants  was  the  most  pleasing 
of  any  I  had  seen.  They  became  much  interested,  and,  as 
the  house  in  which  we  were  seated  was  small,  gave  orders 
to  proceed  to  Isoaierana,  the  mansion  I  had  previously  vis- 
ited with  the  prince,  about  two  miles  distant.  On  arriving 
at  this  place  the  officers  again  formed  a  circle  round  the 
door  until  the  prince  and  princess  had  entered  and  invited 
them  to  follow,  after  which  they  entered.  We  assembled 
in  the  spacious  saloon  or  hall,  with  the  band  at  one  end. 
After  conversing  some  time,  the  band  struck  up.  Eight 
young  men  danced  first.  Four  officers  and  the  court  ladies 
then  danced  what  was  called  an  English  country-dance,  and 
I  was  appealed  to  as  to  its  being  veritably  such,  but  was 
again  obliged  to  express  my  ignorance  on  the  subject.  At 
the  close  of  each  dance  the  dancers  came  and  made  a  low 
obeisance  before  the  prince  and  princess,  and  then  returned 
to  their  seats. 

The  music  continued,  with  occasional  intervals  of  con- 
versation, until  five  o'clock,  when  the  prince  and  princess 
rose.  The  prince,  who  had  treated  the  princess  with  the 
most  marked  attention  throughout  the  day,  now  led  her  to 
her  palanquin,  and  then  entered  his  own.  I  was  amused 
at  the  rush  and  bustle  which  the  departure  of  the  prince 
and  princess  occasioned  in  collecting  bearers  and  bringing 
the  palanquins  and  horses  to  the  front  of  the  house  where 
the  owners  were  in  waiting  for  them,  as  etiquette  required 
that  all  the  other  palanquins  should  precede  those  of  the 
prince  and  his  consort. 

We  took  the  road  by  which  I  had  returned  with  the 


408  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xm. 

prince  on  the  previous  occasion.  There  are  two  encamp- 
ments in  the  neighborhood  of  the  capital,  and  the  soldiers 
occupying  these  encampments  had  been  exercising  during 
the  former  part  of  the  day  in  the  plain  we  had  left.  Our 
way  led  us  near  a  number  of  small  encampments.  The 
tents  were  formed  of  rofia  cloth.  The  soldiers  on  duty  in 
each  encampment  were  called  out,  and  saluted  their  young 
rulers  as  we  passed.  The  men  wore  the  white  cloth  in  na- 
tive fashion  round  their  loins,  with  cross-belts  and  eartouch- 
boxes  over  their  naked  shoulders,  and  were  all  armed  with 
muskets  and  bayonets.  One  of  the  officers  told  me  there 
were  40,000  troops  in  the  two  encampments,  and  a  company 
of  artillery.  I  saw,  however,  but  a  comparatively  small 
number  of  the  soldiers.  My  friend  pointed  out  to  me  again 
the  place  of  execution,  as  well  as  the  graves  of  Mr.  Hastie, 
Mr.  Tyerman,  and  the  members  of  the  mission  families  who 
had  died  at  the  capital.  The  spot  was  surrounded  by  a 
small  iron  fence.  He  also  pointed  out  the  former  residences 
of  the  missionaries,  with  other  places  of  interest. 

The  sun  had  set  when  we  entered  the  capital.  At  the 
place  where  I  had  joined  the  procession  I  alighted,  thanked 
the  prince  and  princess  for  the  gratification  they  had  afford- 
ed me,  and  then  proceeded  to  my  own  residence,  which  I 
reached  between  six  and  seven  o'clock,  just  as  it  was  be- 
coming dark.  In  the  evening  two  parties  of  friends  from 
different  parts  of  the  country  came,  and  we  continued  in 
deeply-interesting  conversation  until  a  late  hour. 

During  the  two  succeeding  days  I  saw  numerous  friends 
and  many  visitors,  some  from  Vonizongo,  where  affliction 
has  been  very  severely  felt.  The  immediate  descendants 
and  other  relatives  of  Eafaravavy  were  among  the  number. 
I  had  now  almost  ceaseless  applications  for  medicine,  and 
was  glad  to  comply  with  as  many  requests  as  I  could.  One 
of  my  bearers  from  Tamatave  was  a  slave,  and  I  was  so 
much  pleased  with  his  attention  and  general  behavior  that 


CHAP.  xiii.  A  SLAVE'S  PROPOSAL.  409 

I  told  him  I  should  be  glad  to  hire  him  when  I  had  any 
thing  to  do.  The  next  morning  he  came  to  say  that  his 
master  was  willing  to  sell  him,  and  also  to  entreat  me  to 
buy  him,  and  expressing  great  regret  when  I  told  him  I 
could  not  gratify  his  wishes.  I  knew  that  I  could  not  take 
him  away  with  me,  and  was  not  certain  that,  had  I  purchased 
his  liberty,  he  would  not  have  been  enslaved  again  after  my 
departure.  Compared  with  slavery  as  it  existed  formerly 
in  our  colonies,  the  yoke  on  Malagasy  slaves  sits  easy,  yet 
it  is  a  bitter  and  soul-depressing  lot.  I  was  often  impressed 
with  the  indifference  manifested  by  the  slave  to  many  things 
that  to  others  are  objects  of  eager  desire  and  evident  satis- 
faction. When  I  have  offered  some  present,  as  a  piece  of 
cloth,  in  return  for  some  service  rendered,  or  even  a  piece 
of  money,  the  slave  has  scarcely  cared  to  accept  it ;  and 
when  I  have  expressed  my  surprise  at  such  indifference,  I 
have  been  told  by  some  around  me,  "  It  is  of  no  use  giving 
any  thing  to  him.  If  it  is  a  present  his  master  will  take  it 
when  he  returns  home ;  if  it  is  money  he  must  give  it  to 
his  master."  Nothing  is  his  but  what  he  eats  and  drinks. 
Hence  access  to  the  kitchen  seemed  to  be  the  best  reward 
a  slave  could  receive. 


410  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAT.  xiv. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

Audience  of  the  Queen  at  the  Palace. — Salutation  to  the  Queen. — Allusion 
to  Presentation  to  Queen  Victoria. — Offering  of  the  Hasina. — Declara- 
tion of  the  Friendship  of  the  English  toward  the  Malagasy. — The  Queen's 
Reply  relative  to  the  Constancy  of  the  English. — Assurance  of  Friend- 
ship and  Good-will  from  the  English  Government. — Desire  of  the  Queen 
for  Amity  with  all  Nations. — Description  of  the  Palace. — The  Queen's 
Appearance,  Dress,  and  regal  State. — The  Members  of  her  Court. — 
Satisfaction  of  the  Queen  with  my  Visit. — Breakfast  with  M.  Laborde. — 
Conversations  with  the  Prince. — Wealth  of  Malagasy  Nobles. — Dinner 
given  by  the  Queen. — Number  of  Dishes. —  Native  Plate. — Music. — 
Speeches  after  Dinner. —  Sovereign  Rights  of  Nations. — Visits  of  the 
Sick. — Intercourse  with  Natives  who  had  visited  Bourbon. — Photographic 
Difficulties. — Presents  for  the  Queen. — Portraits  of  the  Queen  and  Prince 
Consort  peculiarly  gratifying. — Invitation  to  the  Palace. — Music. — Saka- 
lave  Dance. — Native  and  European  Dances. — Gorgeous  and  splendid  Cos- 
tume of  the  Court. 

EARLY  on  the  morning  of  the  5th  of  September,  a  pres- 
ent of  poultry  came  from  the  queen,  and  a  note  from  a 
friend  in  the  palace  to  say  that  the  queen  would  see  me 
during  the  day.  I  venture  to  insert  the  note  conveying 
this  intelligence  as  evidence  of  the  absence  of  all  circumlo- 
cution in  the  official  and  semi-official  communications  from 
the  Malagasy  seat  of  government.  The  note  was  as  fol- 
lows: 

"Friday  morning. 

"  MY  DEAR  FRIEND, — I  inform  you  as  a  friend  that  the 
queen  will  give  you  an  audience  to-day  in  the  palace ;  con- 
sequently when  you  are  ordered  to  come  up,  put  on  your 
best  dress,  etc.,  etc.,  and  take  a  gold  sovereign  and  a  dollar. 
How  are  you  this  morning? 

"  Yours  truly,  E ." 


CHAP.  xiv.  INVITATION  TO  THE  PALACE.  411 

In  the  course  of  the  forenoon  my  friend  came  to  inform 
me  that  I  should  be  required  to  attend  about  three  o'clock, 
and  to  inquire  how  I  meant  to  dress.  I  told  him  I  had  not 
thought  of  any  other  dress  than  such  as  I  should  wear  at 
a  dinner  or  evening  party  in  England.  He  did  not  seem 
satisfied,  and  expressed  a  wish  to  see  my  wardrobe ;  and 
discovering  in  a  chest  which  I  opened  a  rich  satin  green 
and  purple  plaid  dressing-gown,  with  scarlet  lining,  which 
I  had  purchased  in  London  for  a  present  to  one  of  the  no- 
bles, he  instantly  suggested  that  I  should  put  that  on  over 
my  coat,  and  throw  one  side  back  that  the  lining  might  also 
be  seen.  I  at  first  thought  him  jesting;  but,  finding  him 
very  much  in  earnest,  I  consented  to  comply  with  his  wishes. 
A  few  minutes  after  three  o'clock  the  following  note  was 
delivered: 

"  Sin, — Please  to  follow  the  bearer  of  this  as  quick  as 
possible,  that  you  may  have  an  audience  of  her  majesty. 
"  Yours  truly,  E ." 

I  finished  my  toilet,  including  the  dressing-gown,  not 
much  to  my  own  satisfaction,  and  proceeded  to  my  palan- 
quin, where  I  could  not  help  noticing  the  dress  of  some  of 
my  own  bearers,  especially  Sodra,  who,  on  his  head  or  per- 
son^ had  got  something  of  almost  every  color  in  the  rain- 
bow, and  arranged  after  his  own  fashion. 

As  we  approached  the  palace  crowds  of  people  lined  the 
road.  We  halted  on  reaching  the  post  of  the  first  guards 
outside  the  gates,  where  the  officer  who  was  with  us  an- 
nounced our  arrival.  In  a  few  minutes  orders  came  for  us 
to  proceed.  As  we  passed  under  the  large  wooden  gate- 
way, filling  up  the  centre  of  a  neat  stone  arch,  we  took  off 
our  hats,  advanced  toward  the  palace  across  a  square  fifty 
or  sixty  yards  wide,  three  sides  of  which  were  lined  with 
troops  four  deep,  with  a  band  on  the  east  side.  The  sol- 


412  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  xiv. 

diers  wore  the  white  cloth  round  the  waist,  with  white 
cross-belts  upon  their  brown  skins,  and  were  certainly  tall, 
athletic-looking  men.  The  commanding  officer,  a  man  be- 
yond the  middle  age,  but  active  and  vigorous,  wore  a  silk 
shawl  wound  like  a  loose  turban  on  his  head,  a  finely -figur- 
ed shirt,  a  handsome  silk  lamba  or  scarf  round  his  waist  as 
a  sash,  the  fringed  ends  reaching  to  his  ankles,  and  carried 
in  his  hand  a  bright,  highly-ornamented  cimeter.  As  the 
military  evolutions  were  not  finished,  we  halted  for  a  short 
time  about  half  way  across  the  court,  and  then  proceeded 
to  the  position  appointed  us  within  three  or  four  yards  of 
the  soldiers,  and  in  front  of  the  long  white  veranda  under 
which  the  queen  and  her  court  were  assembled.  We  all 
bowed  to  the  queen,  pronouncing  the  salutation,  "Tsara, 
tsara,  tompoko" — "It  is  well,  it  is  well,  sovereign."  We 
then  turned  to  the  east,  and  bowed  to  the  tomb  of  Eadama, 
a  small  square  stone  building  on  the  side  of  the  court.  We 
were  then  conducted  to  our  appointed  places.  I  was  placed 
in  the  centre,  immediately  before  the  queen,  with  an  inter- 
preter on  each  side.  Two  French  gentlemen  residing  in 
the  capital  had  been  invited  to  be  present.  M.  Laborde,  a 
French  resident,  stood  on  the  right  of  one  of  the  interpret- 
ers, and  M.  Fenez,  a  French  Eoman  Catholic  priest,  a  stout, 
good-natured-looking  man,  on  the  left.  He  was  residing 
with  M.  Laborde,  and  had  been  introduced  to  me  as  M. 
Hervier.  M.  Laborde's  costume  was  in  excellent  style ;  and 
M.  Hervier,  the  priest,  wore  a  dress  coat  and  silk  embroid- 
ered waistcoat.  The  interpreters,  officers  who  had  been  ed- 
ucated in  England,  kept  me  so  promptly  informed  as  to 
what  I  was  to  do,  that  I  felt  relieved  from  all  apprehen- 
sion of  any  gross  violation  of  court  etiquette. 

It  was  now  intimated  that  I  must  speak  and  offer  the 
hasina  or  customary  offering,  without  which  no  stranger 
approaches  the  sovereign.  The  interpreters  charged  me  to 
speak  sufficiently  loud  for  all  to  hear  my  speech  as  well  as 


CHAP.  xiv.  PRESENTATION  TO  THE  QUEEN.  413 

their  interpretation.  I  first  thanked  the  queen  for  havino- 
invited  me  to  her  presence,  and  hoped  that  she  and  her  re- 
lations were  well.  When  this  was  interpreted  her  majesty 
spoke  to  a  tall,  gray-headed  chief,  the  queen's  speaker  or 
orator,  who  stood  between  her  and  Eainjohary,  the  chief 
minister;  and  the  orator  replied  that  the  queen  was  well, 
and  all  her  relations  were  well,  and  asked  how  I  was  after 
the  journey,  and  whether  I  had  been  ill  with  the  fever.  I 
thanked  the  queen,  saying  I  had  been  slightly  indisposed, 
but  was  now  well ;  adding,  that  I  had  heard  much  of  Mad- 
agascar and  of  her  majesty  in  my  own  country,  where  I 
had  had  the  honor  of  being  presented  to  my  own  gracious 
sovereign,  Queen  Victoria,  of  kneeling  before  her,  and  kiss- 
ing her  majesty's  hand,  the  mode  by  which  her  subjects  on 
some  occasions  personally  render  their  homage ;  that  I  had 
wished  to  visit  Madagascar,  and,  now  I  had  the  honor  of 
being  presented  to  her  majesty,  I  begged  to  repeat  my 
thanks  for  that  honor,  and  to  present  my  hasina  in  token 
of  acknowledgment.  Taking  a  sovereign  out  of  my  pock- 
et, and  throwing  open  my  long  loose  robe  in  doing  so,  I 
handed  the  sovereign  to  one  of  the  officers.  The  hasina 
was  acknowledged  on  the  part  of  the  queen  by  a  slight  in- 
clination of  the  head.  I  then  said  that  the  English  had 
long  cherished  sentiments  of  friendship  toward  the  Mala- 
gasy ;  that,  forty  years  ago,  George  IV.,  King  of  England, 
wished  to  be  a  friend  to  king  Kadama,  and  sent  some  of 
his  officers  to  make  a  treaty  of  friendship  with  him,  and  to 
engage  with  him  not  to  export  slaves  from  his  country ; 
that  Eadama  kept  that  treaty  faithfully ;  and  that  her  maj- 
esty had  not  deviated  from  what  Eadama  had  engaged  to 
do,  and  did  not  allow  slaves  to  be  exported  from  her  coun- 
try. That  England  did  not  change  in  its  friendship  toward 
Madagascar;  that,  after  the  death  of  George  IV.,  King  Wil- 
liam IV.  reigned  in  England,  and  he  was  friendly  to  her 
majesty's  country,  as  her  own  embassador  who  had  visited 


414  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xiv. 

his  majesty  could  testify ;  and  that  now  Queen  Victoria, 
the  present  ruler  of  England,  did  not  change  in  regard  to 
Madagascar,  but  was  her  majesty's  friend,  and  the  friend 
of  the  government  and  people  of  Madagascar. 

When  this  was  interpreted  the  queen  spoke  to  her  ora- 
tor, who  replied  that  her  majesty  knew  that  the  English 
did  not  change,  or  were  not  uncertain  in  their  friendship, 
and  that  neither  did  she,  the  Queen  of  Madagascar,  change 
in  her  friendship ;  that  she  cherished  friendship  toward 
England,  the  government  of  England,  and  toward  Queen 
Victoria,  and  desired  ever  to  do  so. 

I  replied,  I  was  sure  it  would  be  gratifying  to  the  En- 
glish to  know  this,  for  England  desired  to  be  friendly  with 
all  nations,  and  considered  peace  and  friendship  and  com- 
mercial intercourse  among  nations  the  best  means  of  pro- 
moting the  happiness  of  all.  I  said  that  the  Eight  Hon. 
the  Earl  of  Clarendon,  Queen  Victoria's  chief  minister  for 
all  arrangements  with  foreign  nations,  having  heard  that  I 
was  about  to  visit  Madagascar,  had  desired  me  to  tell  her 
majesty  and  her  majesty's  government  that  the  English 
government  never  had  entertained  any  other  than  the  most 
friendly  intentions  toward  Madagascar ;  that  the  govern- 
ment of  Queen  Victoria  cherished  no  other  wishes  or  inten- 
tions now ;  and  that,  if  her  majesty  had  heard  any  report  to 
the  contrary,  such  report  was  altogether  unfounded.  I 
added  that  it  was  stated  in  a  letter  which  the  Eight  Hon. 
the  Earl  of  Clarendon  directed  to  be  written  to  me  before  I 
left  England,  "that  the  government  of  her  majesty  the 
Queen  of  England  are  most  anxious  for  the  welfare  and 
prosperity  of  Madagascar,  and  desire  to  maintain  the  most 
amicable  relations  with  the  queen ;  but  they  have  no  claim 
and  no  intention  to  interfere  with  the  internal  affairs  of  the 
island." 

This  was  interpreted,  and  there  was  an  expression  of  sat- 
isfaction from  the  whole  court.  The  queen  then  turning  to 


CHAP.  xiv.  THE  FRIENDSHIP  OF  ENGLAND.  415 

the  prince  royal,  her  son,  who  sat  next  to  her,  and  to  Prince 
Ramboasalama,  her  nephew,  spoke  with  animation,  and  at 
some  length.  Her  orator  then  said  that  the  Queen  of  Mad- 
agascar was  satisfied  to  possess  the  friendship  of  the  English ; 
that  she  wished  to  be  the  friend  of  her  majesty  Queen  Vic- 
toria and  the  English  government ;  and  that  she  did  not  wish 
to  regard  as  enemies  any  (nation)  across  the  seas,  but  to  be 
friendly  with  all,  whether  English,  or  French,  or  any  other 
nation. 

I  then  begged  to  thank  the  queen  for  the  kindness  and 
hospitality  I  had  received  ever  since  my  arrival,  more  es- 
pecially during  the  journey,  and  from  her  majesty  and  the 
officers  since  my  arrival  at  the  capital.  The  queen  replied 
that  it  was  right  the  officers  should  treat  me  as  a  friend. 
Soon  after  this  a  number  of  the  officers  rose,  and  Eainjo- 
hary,  the  chief  minister,  intimated  that  we  might  retire. 
"We  all  bowed  to  the  queen,  turned  to  the  east,  and  bowed 
to  the  tomb  of  Kadama,  and  proceeded  toward  the  gate ;  but, 
as  the  band  struck  up  the  Malagasy  "  God  save  the  Queen," 
we  halted,  and  took  off  our  hats ;  and,  finally,  at  about  half 
past  four,  left  the  palace  through  the  same  gate  by  which 
we  had  entered. 

Such  was  my  first  interview  with  the  Queen  of  Madagas- 
car. I  believe  the  expression  of  satisfaction  with  the  assur- 
ance I  was  able  to  give  of  the  friendship  of  England  was 
general  and  sincere.  It  confirmed  the  long-cherished  pre- 
possessions of  the  people  in  favor  of  our  country.  And 
when  it  is  recollected  that  nearly  twenty  years  had  elapsed 
since  any  Englishman  had  visited  the  capital,  and  that  for 
nearly  ten  years  previous  to  my  first  visit  in  company  with 
Mr.  Cameron  all  amicable  intercourse  had  been  interrupted 
in  consequence  of  the  unauthorized  and  unjustifiable  attack 
on  Tamatave  by  the  English  frigate  Conway,  in  conjunc- 
tion with  two  French  vessels ;  and,  more  especially,  if  we 
bear  in  mind  the  reports  which,  during  that  interval,  had 


416  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xiv. 

been  circulated  in  the  island,  to  the  effect  that  a  hostile  fleet 
from  England  was  coming  against  Madagascar,  we  shall  not 
be  surprised  at  the  cordial  welcome  with  which  the  message 
I  had  delivered  was  received. 

The  account  of  my  presentation  to  the  queen  would,  how- 
ever, be  incomplete  without  some  slight  notice  of  the  palace 
and  its  occupants.  The  palace  called  the  Silver  House  is  an 
astonishing  building.  Few  countries  could  furnish  spars 
such  as  those  which  form  the  angles  of  this  wonderful  struc- 
ture. It  is  entirely  of  wood,  and  is  spacious,  lofty,  and  light, 
as  well  as  strong,  and  well  put  together ;  parallelogram  in 
plan,  and  seemingly  a  hundred  feet  long ;  fifty  or  sixty  feet 
wide,  and  seventy  feet  high.  The  walls  are  two  stories  high, 
and  the  whole  building  surrounded  by  a  double  veranda. 
The  roof,  which  is  of  shingles,  is  steep,  with  three  tiers  of 
attic  windows  in  the  ends  and  sides.  The  centre  of  the  roof 
is  surmounted  by  a  large  gilt  bird  with  outstretched  wings. 
I  suppose  the  veromahery — literally,  bird  of  power — a  spe- 
cies of  vulture,  and  the  crest  or  emblem  of  the  Hovas.  The 
large  court  at  the  north  end  of  the  palace  is  inclosed  by  a 
stone  wall,  and  the  gate  is  in  the  northern  side  of  the  square. 
The  building  is  not  painted ;  but  the  wood  appeared  to  be 
close-grained  and  durable. 

The  queen  and  court  were  assembled  in  the  upper  ve- 
randa or  balcony.  Her  majesty  occupied  the  central  place, 
her  seat  being  raised  above  the  rest,  and  covered  with  green 
damask.  Her  niece,  the  Princess  Eabodo,  and  the  female 
members  of  her  court,  sat  on  her  right  hand ;  her  son  next 
to  her,  on  the  left ;  then  her  nephew,  the  other  members  of 
her  family,  and  the  chief  officers  of  the  government.  A 
large  scarlet  silk  umbrella,  embroidered  and  fringed  with 
gold,  was  held  or  fixed  over  the  queen,  and  a  smaller  scar- 
let umbrella,  without  ornament,  was  over  the  princess.  The 
queen's  figure  is  not  tall,  but  rather  stout,  her  face  round? 
the  forehead  well  formed,  the  eyes  small,  nose  short,  but  not 


AUDIENCE  AT  TIIE  PALACE  ANTANANABIVO. 


CHAP.  xiv.     APPEARANCE  AND  DRESS  OF  THE  QUEEN.       41!> 

broad,  lips  well  defined  and  small,  the  chin  slightly  rounded. 
The  whole  head  and  face  small,  compact,  and  well  propor- 
tioned ;  her  expression  of  countenance  rather  agreeable  than 
otherwise,  though  at  times  indicating  great  firmness.  She 
looked  in  good  health,  and  vigorous,  considering  her  age, 
which  is  said  to  be  sixty-eight. 

Her  majesty  wore  a  crown  made  of  plates  of  gold,  with 
an  ornament  and  charm,  something  like  a  gold  crocodile's 
tooth,  in  the  front  plate ;  she  had  also  a  necklace  and  large 
earrings  of  gold.  Her  dress  was  a  white  satin  lamba,  with 
sprigs  of  gold,  which,  considering  the  lamba  as  the  national 
Hova  costume,  was  quite  a  queenly  dress.  The  prince,  her 
son,  wore  his  star  and  a  coronet  of  apparently  green  velvet, 
bordered  with  a  ring  and  band  of  leaves  of  massive  silver. 
His  cousin,  Prince  Kamboasalama,  wore  a  black  velvet  cap 
embroidered  with  gold.  Many  of  the  officers  wore  silk 
lambas  over  their  clothes. 

Including  the  members  of  the  queen's  family,  officers  of 
the  government,  and  attendants,  there  might  be  perhaps 
eighty  or  a  hundred  persons  in  the  balcony,  but  a  becom- 
ing dignity  and  propriety  of  deportment  was  manifest  in  all. 
No  one  spoke  besides  the  queen  and  her  orator,  excepting 
the  prince  and  one  or  two  others  near  her  person,  who  re- 
plied to  some  remarks  which  the  queen  addressed  to  them ; 
and,  could  the  remembrance  of  the  tragic  scenes  which  Mad- 
agascar has  witnessed  within  the  last  twenty  or  thirty  years 
have  been  blotted  out,  I  should  have  gazed  on  the  spectacle 
without  any  diminution  of  interest  or  pleasure,  as  exhibit- 
ing, in  connection  with  the  ruling  power  of  the  country,  the 
outward  indication  of  its  progress  and  civilization. 

I  had  mentioned,  when  conversing  with  the  princess  at 
Isoaierana,  that  I  had  some  pieces  of  music  with  me,  and  in 
the  course  of  the  evening  a  messenger  came  from  the  palace 
to  request  that  I  would  send  them,  also  any  more  copies  of 
the  London  Illustrated  News  which  I  might  have  by  me ; 


420  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xiv. 

and  I  was  glad  to  supply  them  with  such  pieces  of  music  as 
a  kind  friend,  Mrs.  Bartholomew,  a  lady  not  unknown  in  the 
musical  world,  had  given  me  in  London  before  my  depart- 
ure. I  was  afterward  told  that  a  new  piece  of  music  was 
highly  prized,  and  that  the  additions  which  my  friends  had 
enabled  me  to  make  to  the  music  used  at  the  palace  had 
been  particularly  acceptable.  The  evening  of  this  day  I 
devoted  to  writing  my  journal  as  far  as  the  visits  of  friends 
would  allow,  but  they  came  in  such  numbers  as  to  occasion 
some  anxiety  to  my  companions. 

I  had  been  invited  by  the  French  gentleman  whom  I  met 
at  the  palace  to  breakfast  with  him  on  the  following  morn- 
ing, and  about  nine  o'clock  one  of  the  officers  of  the  palace 
called  to  accompany  me.  He  informed  me  that  the  queen 
and  her  court  were  pleased  with  the  statement  I  had  made 
on  the  previous  day,  adding  that  all  were  delighted  with 
the  pieces  of  music  I  had  sent,  and  that  the  queen  had  said 
she  should  some  day  send  for  me  to  hear  the  music  and  see 
the  dancing  at  the  palace.  On  reaching  the  house  of  M. 
Laborde  we  found  the  prince  and  one  of  his  aids-de-camp 
already  there.  I  was  also  introduced  to  M.  Hervier,  the 
French  Eoman  Catholic  priest  whom  I  had  met  at  the  pal- 
ace the  day  before.  Here  I  also  met  M.  Laborde's  son,  a 
young  man  about  twenty,  recently  returned  to  Madagascar 
after  completing  his  education  in  France.  In  a  short  time 
we  sat  down  to  a  very  sumptuous  breakfast  served  in  the 
first  style,  a  small  band  of  music  playing  outside  the  house 
during  the  time.  Before  commencing  the  breakfast  the 
health  of  the  queen  was  proposed,  and,  when  my  glass  was 
filled,  I  apologized  for  not  drinking,  stating  that  I  did  not 
drink  wine,  but  cordially  joined  in  the  sentiment  of  the 
toast.  The  next  toast  was  the  prince.  I  was  sitting  next 
to  him,  and  when  all  rose  he  said,  "Drink  or  not,  as  you 
like."  I  did  not  drink,  but  intimated  my  concurrence  in 
the  toast,  which  he  acknowledged.  In  conversation  re- 


CHAP.  xiv.    BREAKFAST  WITH  A  FKENCH  RESIDENT.           421 

specting  the  climate,  our  host  said  that  the  central  prov- 
inces were  remarkably  healthy,  and  that  thin  ice  was  some- 
times seen  in  the  mountains.  We  also  talked  about  France, 
as  M.  Laborde  said  his  father  lived  at  Pau,  where  I  had 
passed  two  winters.  There  were  many  kinds  of  wine  on 
the  table,  as  well  as  abundance  of  viands,  and  plenty  of 
healths  were  drunk,  including  those  of  Queen  Victoria,  the 
Emperor  of  the  French,  and  the  Queen  of  Madagascar.  To- 
ward the  close  of  the  breakfast  our  host  suggested  to  the 
Catholic  priest  to  propose  my  health  as  their  welcome  guest ; 
but  as  the  priest  did  not  appear  to  have  heard  him,  M.  La- 
borde himself  proposed  it,  observing  that  I  was  not  a  stran- 
ger, but  a  friend,  at  the  same  time  ordering  the  band  to  play 
the  English  "  God  save  the  Queen"  and  "  Eule  Britannia." 
Water-cresses,  salad,  fresh  butter,  preserves,  etc.,  were  served, 
followed  by  dessert,  and,  what  the  French  never  fail  to  pro- 
vide in  every  part  of  the  world,  a  cup  of  good  coffee. 

Our  conversation  was  chiefly  about  the  politics  of  Eu- 
rope and  the  late  war,  and  the  prince  was  unusually  anima- 
ted. Between  one  and  two  we  took  leave  of  our  host  and 
his  friends,  who  expressed  their  hope  of  our  meeting  again 
soon.  I  walked  home.  The  prince  sent  away  his  palan- 
quin, took  my  arm,  and  accompanied  me  to  my  residence. 
Here  he  dismissed  his  attendants,  except  one  of  his  aids- 
de-camp  and  an  officer  of  the  palace,  who  accompanied  him 
into  the  house,  where  we  were  soon  engaged  in  grave  and 
earnest  conversation  on  subjects  intimately  connected  with 
the  prosperity  of  his  country.  He  spoke  feelingly  of  the 
difficulties  which  impeded  improvement  among  the  Mala- 
gasy, and  made  many  inquiries  respecting  the  sources  of 
prosperity  in  our  own  and  other  countries.  This  conversa- 
tion increased  the  good  opinion  I  had  previously  formed 
of  his  understanding  and  capacity,  while  it  confirmed  my 
views  of  the  correctness  of  many  of  his  opinions,  the  mark- 
ed humanity  of  his  feelings,  and  his  earnest  desire  after  the 


422  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xiv. 

true  prosperity  of  his  people.  Much,  that  he  said  strength- 
ened my  hopes  of  the  welfare  of  Madagascar  if  his  valuable 
life  should  be  preserved. 

While  we  were  talking  a  present  of  a  couple  of  baskets 
of  small  lobsters  arrived  from  the  princess.  I  returned  an 
acknowledgment  by  the  bearer,  and  assured  the  prince  of 
my  sense  of  her  kindness.  He  said  she  was  pleased  with 
what  she  had  seen  of  me,  and  would  come  with  him  some 
evening  to  my  house.  I  said  I  should  be  glad  to  see  the 
princess,  but,  being  only  a  traveler  and  a  sojourner  for  a 
short  time  in  the  capital,  I  could  offer  no  suitable  entertain- 
ment. He  said  it  would  not  be  for  the  entertainment  that 
the  princess  would  come,  but  to  express  her  pleasure  at  the 
arrival  of  a  friendly  visitor  from  England,  and  to  hear  our 
conversation.  The  afternoon  was  far  advanced  before  the 
prince  and  his  companion  left.  I  had  not  many  visitors 
that  evening,  most  of  my  friends  being  engaged  in  another 
direction. 

The  next  day  I  received  a  note  from  the  palace  convey- 
ing an  invitation  to  a  dinner  to  be  given  by  the  queen  on 
the  following  day  at  a  house  adjacent  to  the  palace,  and 
lately  occupied  by  one  of  her  chief  ministers,  whose  son  had 
already  paid  me  more  than  one  visit.  As  illustrating  the 
wealth  of  some  of  the  Malagasy  nobles  I  was  told  that  the 
late  owner  of  the  house  to  which  I  had  been  invited  was,  at 
the  time  of  his  death,  said  to  be  possessed  of  30,000  dollars, 
1000  slaves,  and  3000  head  of  cattle,  besides  sheep.  This 
property  had  been  divided  after  his  death  between  his  wid- 
ow and  children,  a  son  and  two  daughters.  Wealth  equal 
in  amount  to  that  here  stated  is  probably  confined  to  a  lim- 
ited number  of  the  highest  nobles  and  chief  officers  of  the 
government.  Property  appeared  to  be  estimated,  not  by 
the  extent  of  land  which  a  man  possessed,  but  by  the  num- 
ber of  his  dollars,  slaves,  or  cattle ;  hence  an  individual, 
speaking  on  one  occasion  of  the  losses  he  had  suffered,  con- 


CHAP.  xiv.  DINNER  GIVEN  BY  THE  QUEEN.  423 

eluded  by  saying,  "  Formerly  I  had  fifty  slaves ;  now  I  have 
not  twenty." 

At  three  o'clock  on  the  day  appointed,  an  officer  came 
to  conduct  me  to  the  dinner;  and  after  ascending  by  a 
somewhat  steep  path  to  the  crest  of  the  hill  on  which  the 
house  stands,  we  reached  the  front  court,  where  the  queen's 
band,  in  scarlet  uniform  (apparently  English),  was  stationed 
beneath  the  veranda.  On  entering,  I  was  received  by  a 
number  of  servants  dressed  in  a  sort  of  livery,  consisting 
of  blue  jackets  bordered  with  red.  I  was  politely  received 
by  the  owner  of  the  house,  a  number  of  officers,  and  other 
company,  among  whom  were  M.  Laborde  and  the  Catholic 
priest  with  whom  I  had  breakfasted.  When  dinner  was 
announced,  we  were  shown  to  our  respective  places,  which 
were  designated  by  papers  bearing  our  names  placed  on 
the  table.  Mine  was  on  the  left  hand  of  the  chief  officer, 
and  M.  Laborde's  was  immediately  opposite. 

The  room  was  large  and  lofty,  furnished  with  looking- 
glasses  and  other  articles  of  European  or  Asiatic  manufac- 
ture, having  a  large  side-board  at  one  end.  The  table  was 
splendidly  furnished  with  porcelain  vases  filled  with  arti- 
ficial flowers,  and  silver  vases  the  size  of  wine-coolers  along 
the  centre.  The  covered  dishes,  spoons,  and  forks  were  all 
silver ;  the  dishes  as  well  as  the  vases  being  of  native  man- 
ufacture, after  English  patterns,  and  remarkably  well  exe- 
cuted. On  all  these  articles,  as  well  as  on  the  handles  of 
the  knives,  a  crown  and  a  bird,  the  crest  of  the  Hovas, 
were  engraved. 

As  soon  as  all  were  seated,  my  friend  the  secretary,  who 
sat  next  me,  intimated  in  English  that,  as  I  was  a  stranger, 
and  the  queen's  guest,  I  should  now  propose  her  majesty's 
health,  and,  on  a  sign  from  one  of  the  attendants,  the  band 
in  the  veranda  played  the  Malagasy  "  God  save  the  Queen." 

The  dinner  commenced  with  soup,  after  which  an  almost 
endless  variety  of  viands  were  served.  There  must  have 


424  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xiv. 

been  upward  of  thirty  different  dishes  handed  round  in 
succession :  beef  in  every  form,  poultry,  game,  made  dishes 
in  great  variety,  with  pastry,  all  exceedingly  well  cooked, 
especially  the  rice,  and  the  rolls  of  bread.  There  was  not 
much  wine  on  the  table,  the  drinking  was  very  moderate, 
and  there  were  but  few  toasts.  The  utmost  propriety  char- 
acterized the  deportment  of  all  present;  although  there 
were  many  of  the  younger  members  of  the  aristocracy  at 
the  table,  the  entertainment  was  more  lively,  and  much  less 
formal,  than  some  at  which  I  had  been  present  in  the  coun- 
try. After  the  dessert,  tea  was  served  in  small  coffee-cups, 
perhaps  instead  of  coffee,  from  the  supposed  preference  of 
the  English  for  tea. 

After  the  dinner,  the  chief  officer  rose,  and  delivered  a 
speech  expressive  of  the  good-feeling  and  hospitality  of  the 
Queen  of  Madagascar  toward  the  subjects  of  other  govern- 
ments, strangers  from  across  the  sea,  visiting  her  country. 
This  was  said  in  allusion  to  my  presence  among  them ;  and 
then,  stating  that  it  had  been  the  wish  of  the  queen  and 
the  Malagasy  government  to  preserve  friendship  with  all 
foreign  nations,  he  asked  why  it  was  that  they  were  so  fre- 
quently disturbed  by  reports  that  the  French  were  coming 
to  take  their  country.  He  said  that  reports  to  that  effect 
had  been  recently  brought,  and  were  now  in  circulation 
among  the  people ;  and  then,  appealing  to  me  as  recently 
from  Europe,  he  asked  if  I  knew  whether  these  reports 
were  true,  and,  if  so,  why  was  it  that  the  Malagasy  were  to 
be  attacked  ? 

Appealed  to  so  directly,  I  could  not  decline  offering  a 
few  words  on  the  subject;  and  after  thanking  the  queen 
for  the  kind  attention  and  hospitality  I  had  experienced, 
and  observing  that  the  cultivation  of  peaceable  and  friendly 
feelings  among  nations,  and  the  increase  of  commercial  and 
other  intercourse  between  the  people  of  different  countries, 
was  far  more  conducive  to  the  prosperity  of  all,  than  any 


CHAP.  xiv.    UNFRIENDLY  KEPORTS  FROM  EUROPE.  425 

other  course;  and  that  the  feelings  of  good-will  toward 
Madagascar  cherished  in  England  had  been  so  fully  recip- 
rocated by  the  consideration  and  kindness  I  had  received 
since  my  arrival,  and  that  I  trusted  corresponding  senti- 
ments were  cherished  by  the  French,  I  said  that  the  exist- 
ing friendship  and  union  between  England  and  France 
would,  it  was  most  ardently  hoped,  cause  these  two  great 
nations  to  combine  together  to  show  respect  and  friendship 
toward  other  nations,  and  thus  promote  the  prosperity  of 
all.  That  as  to  the  intentions  of  the  French  toward  Mada- 
gascar, I  could  not  possibly  know  any  thing ;  that  in  some 
of  the  newspapers  which  I  had  seen  in  England  there  had 
been  statements  about  a  hostile  expedition  to  be  sent  from 
France  against  Madagascar,  but  whether  there  was  any 
foundation  or  not  for  such  statements  I  could  not  say,  but 
hoped  and  believed  that  time  would  prove  them  to  be  mere 
unfounded  rumors.  The  only  probable  cause  that  I  had 
heard  assigned  was  the  destruction  of  a  settlement  recently 
formed  by  some  Frenchmen  on  the  northwest  coast  of 
Madagascar. 

The  chief  said  they  much  desired  friendly  and  commer- 
cial relations  with  all  nations ;  and,  in  reference  to  the  de- 
struction of  the  settlement,  he  observed  that  some  French- 
men connected  with  Mauritius,  or  the  Island  of  Bourbon, 
had  come  and  established  themselves  in  their  country  with- 
out permission  from  the  government ;  had  brought  a  num- 
ber of  men  from  Mozambique,  had  cut  down  timber,  had 
built  a  fort,  and  had  mounted  cannon.  That  they  had  been 
told  by  the  queen's  officer  who  commanded  at  the  nearest 
military  station,  that  it  was  not  permitted  to  foreigners  to 
come  and  settle  in  the  country  without  permission  of  the 
government,  and  that  they  must  depart.  That  when  they 
had  refused  to  do  so,  the  officer  had  reported  the  same  to 
the  queen,  and  she  had  then  sent  the  force  by  which  the 
settlement  had  been  destroyed.  Then,  appealing  to  me  a 


426  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xiv. 

second  time,  he  said,  "  The  queen  is  the  sole  sovereign  of 
Madagascar,  and  is  it  right  that  the  people  of  England,  or 
of  France,  or  any  other  country,  should  come  to  take  pos- 
session of  her  country  without  her  permission  ?  What  do 
you  think  about  that?  What  would  be  done  to  persons 
who  should  so  act  in  any  other  country  ?" 

In  answer  to  his  appeal,  I  said  I  did  not  know  what 
might  be  done  in  other  countries,  but  if  any  of  the  Mala- 
gasy or  other  persons  were  to  land  in  England,  and  were 
to  attempt  to  take  possession  of  any  of  the  land  or  prop- 
erty there,  they  would  soon  find  themselves  in  the  hands 
of  the  police.  With  regard  to  Madagascar,  I  observed  that 
I  had  always  understood,  from  such  information  as  I  had 
gathered  from  documents  published  on  the  subject,  that 
whatever  rights  the  French  might  have  possessed  or  exer- 
cised in  Madagascar  previous  to  1810  had  been  transferred 
to  the  English  by  the  changes  of  war,  which  at  that  time 
gave  the  Islands  of  Mauritius  and  Bourbon,  with  all  their 
dependencies,  to  the  English,  who  had  soon  afterward  taken 
possession  of  all  French  establishments  in  Madagascar ;  that 
the  English  had  given  back  the  Island  of  Bourbon  to  the 
French  in  1815,  and  had  subsequently  surrendered,  by 
treaty  with  Radama,  all  their  possessions  in  Madagascar  to 
him ;  and  that  whatever  Eadama  possessed  had  descended 
to  the  present  sovereign. 

M.  Laborde  then  rose,  and  said  that  what  I  had  stated 
was  true  with  regard  to  the  rumors  of  a  hostile  fleet.  The}r 
were  only  statements  in  the  newspapers,  and  were  not  au- 
thorized ;  also,  that  if  any  persons  were  to  land  in  France 
or  England  they  would  be  treated  as  I  had  described,  if  not 
worse;  and  that  if  any  English  or  French  came  and  set- 
tled in  Madagascar  without  leave,  the  Malagasy  should  cut 
them  to  pieces. 

The  chief  officer  again  rose  and  said  the  Queen  of  Mada- 
gascar desired  to  be  friendly  with  all  foreign  nations ;  that 


CHAP.  xiv.        APPLICATIONS  FOR  MEDICAL  AID.  427 

she  regarded  none  as  her  enemies ;  and  wished  to  maintain 
friendly  intercourse  with  the  people  of  all  countries. 

Soon  afterward  the  conversation  ended,  and  the  company 
separated.  As  we  went  out  M.  Laborde,  accompanied  by 
his  son  and  the  priest,  took  my  arm  in  his  and  led  the  way 
to  my  palanquin,  where  we  parted  with  mutual  salutations. 

Without  any  pretension  to  a  knowledge  of  medicine  be- 
yond such  as  had  been  acquired  from  books,  by  a  few 
months'  attendance  at  a  colonial  dispensary,  and  nearly  ten 
years'  residence  in  a  place  where  there  was  no  European 
medical  practitioner,  even  to  meet  the  requirements  of  my 
own  family,  I  had  taken  out  with  me  to  Madagascar  a  small 
quantity  of  the  most  common  and  useful  medicines,  and 
had  often  found  them  very  acceptable  to  the  foreigners  as 
well  as  the  natives.  The  examiners  at  the  native  custom- 
house had  opened  the  case  containing  these,  and  also  my 
photographic  chemicals;  and,  as  every  thing  of  the  kind 
was  supposed  to  be  medicine,  my  supply  was  considered  to 
be  abundant,  and  applications  were  proportionately  fre- 
quent. Madagascar  appears  to  be  rich  in  medicinal  plants. 
The  natives  are  acquainted  with  the  properties  of  many ; 
but  they  are  very  anxious  to  obtain  European  medicine,  and 
even  send  occasionally  to  Mauritius  for  a  supply.  Since  my 
arrival  at  the  capital  applications  for  medicine  had  been  nu- 
merous ;  and  before  sunrise  one  morning  a  note  was  brought 
while  I  was  dressing,  informing  me  that  the  bearer  was  an 
officer  of  rank,  and  would  be  glad  if  I  could  render  him  any 
medical  assistance.  He  himself  was  outside  in  his  palan- 
quin. In  a  short  time  he  entered,  accompanied  by  two 
chiefs  and  followed  by  attendants.  I  found  he  had  been 
one  of  the  youths  placed  by  Radama  on  board  English 
ships  of  war  to  learn  seamanship,  and  that  he  had  been  sev- 
eral years  in  a  vessel  commanded  by  Commodore  Nourse. 
He  spoke  much  of  the  life  he  had  led  on  board  the  ships. 
I  found  him  suffering  from  extensive  sores  in  the  lower 


428  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xiv. 

limbs,  to  which  I  applied  dressings  and  bandages,  etc.  Aft- 
er remaining  with  me  two  or  three  hours  he  returned,  but 
repeated  his  visit  in  a  few  days. 

I  had  not  yet  ventured  to  make  any  use  of  my  photo- 
graphic apparatus,  not  feeling  quite  sure  how  it  might  be 
regarded;  but  on  this  day  a  note  came  from  an  officer  of 
the  palace  saying  that  the  prince  wished  to  have  his  like- 
ness taken,  and  would  come  for  that  purpose  on  the  follow- 
ing morning.  As  I  had  my  dark  room  to  arrange,  camera 
to  unpack,  and  chemicals  to  prepare,  I  could  not  possibly 
be  ready  by 'the  next  morning;  and  wrote  to  say  that  I 
should  be  happy  to  take  the  likeness  of  the  prince  as  soon 
as  my  materials  were  ready. 

I  had  a  succession  of  visitors  throughout  the  day  ;  and 
about  seven  o'clock  in  the  evening,  as  I  was  sitting  in  my 
inner  room,  the  young  chief  who  had  accompanied  me  from 
Tamatave  came  in  to  say  that  a  sick  person  with  some 
friends  had  come  to  see  me.  I  said,  "Ask  them  to  come 
in."  When  the  door  opened  they  brought  in  a  palanquin, 
which  they  placed  on  the  table  in  the  outer  room,  and,  aft- 
er removing  the  covering,  raised  up  a  thin,  feeble,  gasping 
woman,  her  husband,  relatives,  and  attendants,  to  the  num- 
ber of  nineteen,  all  standing  round.  Her  husband  stated 
that  all  the  native  medicines  deemed  likely  to  be  of  any 
service  had  been  resorted  to  in  vain,  and  the  patient  was  so 
feeble  as  to  be  unable  to  sit  up,  and  could  scarcely  take  any 
food.  I  did  not  expect  much  benefit  would  result  from  anv 
medicine  I  could  give ;  but  I  spoke  kindly  to  the  sufferer 
and  her  friends,  and  promised  such  medicine  as  I  thought 
most  likely  to  afford  relief.  The  poor  invalid  expressed 
her  great  pleasure  at  having  seen  me ;  and  said  she  should 
be  grateful  if  it  should  please  God  to  restore  her  to  health. 
After  conversing  some  time  the  feeble  sufferer  was  gently 
laid  down  in  the  palanquin  by  her  female  friends,  and  care- 
fully covered  over,  when  the  bearers  came  in,  took  up 


CHAP.  xiv.          AFFECTING  CASES  OF  SICKNESS.  429 

their  burden,  and,  followed  by  the  husband  and  friends, 
carried  her  back  to  her  home,  which  I  was  told  was  at 
some  distance. 

As  soon  as  I  was  up  the  next  morning  I  was  asked  to 
go  and  see  a  number  of  sick  persons  from  a  distance,  who 
were  in  an  adjacent  house.  I  found  a  whole  family — the 
mother  with  an  infant  in  her  arms,  and  three  other  children 
— all  suffering  from  what  seemed  to  be  a  severe  attack  of 
influenza.  When  I  had  spoken  to  the  mother,  the  father 
asked  me  if  I  could  afford  any  relief  to  a  young  woman  who 
had  come  with  her,  who  had  been  struck  by  lightning  and 
was  deaf.  He  then  pointed  to  another  in  the  company  who, 
he  said,  was  an  orphan,  and  a  martyr's  child.  While  en- 
gaged with  this  little  company  of  sufferers,  I  was  sent  for  to 
my  own  house,  where  I  found  an  officer  from  the  palace, 
who  asked  for  some  medicine  for  himself  and  his  children, 
and  who  also  told  me  that  the  queen  was  waiting  for  what 
the  diviners  should  declare  to  be  a  lucky  day,  in  order  to 
receive  the  presents  I  had  brought.  I  mentioned  my  want 
of  a  table  for  photographic  purposes,  and  in  the  course  of 
the  afternoon  one  was  sent  from  the  prince's  establishment ; 
and  a  right  royal  table  it  was — so  large  and  heavy  as  only 
with  difficulty  to  be  got  into  the  house. 

Among  my  visitors  in  the  evening  were  a  chief  and  one 
of  his  companions,  who  had  been  during  the  past  year  to 
Ibali.  He  stated  that,  in  consequence  of  reports  of  a  foreign 
teacher  being  at  Ibali,  a  place  on  the  western  coast  of  Mad- 
agascar, a  letter  had  been  written  stating  that  they  had  heard 
of  his  arrival,  but  did  not  know  whether  he  was  English,  or 
French,  or  American,  and  that  the  bearer  of  the  letter  had 
come  to  see  him.  My  visitor,  accompanied  by  five  others, 
had  undertaken  to  convey  this  letter.  Their  equipment 
consisted  of  two  guns  with  ammunition,  a  spade  to  dig  up 
roots  with,  a  knife  or  hatchet,  with  beads  and  buttons,  to 
barter  for  provisions  on  their  way.  After  journeying  through 


430  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAE.  CHAP.  xiv. 

forests  and  swamps,  over  rivers  and  mountains,  sometimes 
almost  famished  for  want  of  food,  they  approached  the  west- 
ern coast.  There  they  were  met  by  a  party  of  Sakalavas, 
the  people  of  the  country,  who  seized  them,  plundered  them 
of  their  guns,  etc.,  stripped  them  of  their  clothes,  and  then 
sold  three  or  four  of  them  as  slaves  to  an  Arab  trader  who 
was  on  the  coast  in  a  small  vessel.  From  him  they  were 
transferred  to  the  French  authorities  at  Nosibe,  an  island 
on  the  northwest  coast  of  Madagascar,  whence  they  were 
to  be  sent  to  Bourbon  to  be  engaged  as  free  laborers  for 
five  years. 

Before  leaving,  however,  the  letter  of  which  they  were 
the  bearers  had  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the  French  au- 
thorities, who,  in  consequence,  kept  these  men  at  Nosibe, 
and  sent  other  men  taken  out  of  the  prison  to  Bourbon  in 
their  stead.  At  Nosibe  they  were  treated  with  great  kind- 
ness by  the  Roman  Catholic  priests,  who  took  them  to  their 
places  of  worship  and  endeavored  to  instruct  them  in  the 
Roman  Catholic  religion.  Afterward  they  sent  them  to 
Bourbon,  where  the  priests  showed  them  much  attention, 
and  endeavored  to  induce  them  to  regard  their  religion  with 
favor.  They  were  afterward  sent  to  the  island  of  St.  Mary's, 
on  the  east  coast,  also  occupied  by  the  French;  whence 
they  proceeded  to  the  main  land,  and  then  hastened  up  to 
the  capital. 

I  was  deeply  interested  in  the  account  which  the  chief 
gave  me  of  many  of  the  incidents  of  the  journey,  of  the 
former  part  of  which  he  subsequently  furnished  me  with  an 
account  in  writing.  He  spoke  of  the  uniform  kindness  they 
had  received  at  Bourbon,  and  of  the  endeavors  made  to  in- 
duce them  to  stay.  But  they  did  not  appear  to  have  been 
at  all  inclined  to  adopt  the  religion  of  the  people.  In  a 
letter  which  some  of  the  natives  wrote,  after  repeated  con- 
versations with  those  of  their  countrymen  who  had  been  in 
Bourbon,  they  said,  "  It  seemed  as  if  the  Pope  stood  (in 


CHAP.  xiv.       VISIT  FROM  A  SUPERIOR  OFFICER.  431 

authority)  in  the  place  of  God,  and  that  the  priest  forgave 
sins.  And  as  to  the  images,  etc.,  before  which  they  pros- 
trated themselves,  it  was  like  the  sampy  or  idols  of  our  own 
country."  This  appeared  to  be  the  impression  which  the  re- 
ports of  the  travelers  had  made  on  their  minds.  However 
much  I  might  deem  the  teaching  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
priests  to  be  erroneous,  and  however  the  Eomish  system 
might,  in  my  apprehension,  tend  to  hinder  rather  than  help 
the  people  in  their  endeavors  after  knowledge,  improvement, 
freedom,  and  expansion  of  thought,  as  well  as  social  eleva- 
tion, I  could  not  disapprove  of  the  endeavors  of  the  priests 
to  make  the  strangers  acquainted  with  their  creed  and  modes 
of  worship,  but  was  not  surprised  to  find  that  it  had  not 
commended  itself  to  their  judgment  and  approval. 

In  the  evening  I  received  a  visit  from  one  of  the  highest 
officers  in  the  government.  He  was  a  remarkably  hand- 
some man.  His  features  were  small  and  quite  European, 
though  his  complexion  was  almost  black.  He  was  splen- 
didly dressed,  and  accompanied  by  two  aids-de-camp,  also 
fine,  noble-looking  men.  After  a  long  and  interesting  con- 
versation, my  sensible  and  really  intelligent  visitors  took 
their  leave. 

I  then  resumed  my  preparations  for  taking  the  likeness 
of  the  prince,  who  had  sent  to  inform  me  that  he  should 
come  in  the  morning.  I  had  finished  all  except  adding  the 
acetic  acid  to  the  developing  solution,  and  the  rectifying 
of  the  bath ;  but  no  acetic  acid  could  I  find.  The  case  of 
chemicals  put  up  by  Messrs.  Hopkins  and  Williams  was 
examined  again,  and  all  the  bottles  taken  out:  many  that 
I  seemed  likely  to  want,  and  some  things  that  I  never 
seemed  likely  to  want,  were  there,  but  neither  acetic  acid 
nor  any  other  fluid  acid.  Every  other  box  or  case  in 
which  it  was  even  likely  to  be  was  examined,  but  with  no 
better  success,  and  about  midnight  I  gave  up  the  search, 
and  wrote  a  note  to  be  taken  by  a  friend  to  the  prince  at 


432  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xiv. 

daybreak,  to  say  I  could  not  possibly  take  his  portrait  in 
the  morning.  I  then  examined  all  my  invoices,  and  to  my 
dismay  found  no  acetic  acid  there.  My  friend  Mr.  Fenton 
had  assisted  me  in  making  out  the  list,  and  I  had  the  most 
distinct  remembrance  of  speaking  about  it  at  the  time ;  but 
how  it  came  to  be  omitted  is  still  a  mystery.  My  perplex- 
ity was  great ;  and  I  am  sure  all  photographers  who  have 
been  in  similar  circumstances  of  destitution,  in  a  county 
where  there  were  no  chemists'  shops,  and  no  fellow-pho- 
tographers of  whom  to  borrow,  will  be  able  fully  to  sympa- 
thize with  me. 

I  had  scarcely  finished  breakfast  when  the  inquiry  I  had 
anticipated  came  from  the  queen's  secretary — when  could 
I  take  the  likeness  of  the  prince  ?  I  replied,  as  soon  as  I 
had  finished  making  the  "strong  water,"  one  of  the  ingre- 
dients for  which  I  had  not  yet  found.  The  secretary  was 
accompanied  by  his  wife  and  three  children,  for  whom  he 
solicited  some  medicine.  Then  I  had  a  note  from  the  son 
of  one  of  the  princes,  informing  me  of  his  illness  and  ask- 
ing for  medicine.  The  rest  of  the  day  was  comparatively 
quiet. 

On  Monday,  August  15th,  I  was  again  among  the  chem- 
icals by  daybreak,  but  with  no  better  success ;  gallic  and 
pyrogallic  acids  were  all  I  could  find.  I  sent  my  servant 
to  the  market  to  buy  a  quantity  of  the  sourest  Malagasy 
limes  he  could  find,  and  took  some  tartaric  acid,  not  very 
pure,  out  of  my  medicine-chest.  While  I  was  at  breakfast 
four  officers  arrived,  followed  by  a  number  of  attendants 
bearing  baskets  of  eggs,  poultry,  and  rice,  as  a  present  from 
the  queen,  for  which  I  expressed  my  grateful  acknowledg- 
ments; when  the  officers  returned,  and  I  proceeded  with 
my  experiments. 

Having  received,  on  the  previous  day,  an  mtinlation 
that  the  queen  would  send  for  the  presents  to-day,  I  had 
made  all  ready ;  and  about  noon  the  officers  came  from  the 


CHAP.  xiv.  ACCEPTABLE  PKESENTS  TO  THE  QUEEN.     433 

palace  to  take  them  to  the  queen.  I  had  previously  ar- 
ranged them,  and  made  out  lists  of  all  the  articles.  I  re- 
peated what  I  had  already  stated  to  the  officers,  that  I  had 
not  the  treasure  of  the  merchants  who  sometimes  visited 
the  capital,  and  regretted  that  my  presents  were  so  insig- 
nificant ;  but  desired  to  offer  what  I  had  brought  as  express- 
ive of  my  grateful  sense  of  the  kind  reception  I  had  met 
with,  and  a  trifling  memorial  of  my  visit.  I  then  handed 
to  them  a  parcel  containing  jewelry  from  his  excellency 
the  Governor  of  Mauritius,  and  afterward  delivered  to 
them  the  boxes  containing  my  presents  for  the  queen,  the 
prince,  and  the  princess,  which  were  to  be  taken  to  the 
palace.  Those  for  the  chiefs  were  to  be  taken  to  their  own 
houses. 

Among  my  presents  to  the  queen  was  a  large  framed  en- 
graving of  our  own  gracious  sovereign,  and  of  his  royal 
highness  the  Prince  Consort,  together  with  a  large  colored 
print  of  Windsor  Castle,  also  in  a  gilt  frame.  I  had  heard 
that  there  were  good-sized  plates  of  the  portraits  of  the  Em- 
peror and  the  Empress  of  the  French  in  the  palace,  and  the 
officers  when  they  saw  the  portraits  of  Queen  Victoria  and 
the  Prince  Consort  said  they  thought  they  would  be  accept- 
able to  their  queen.  The  presents  for  the  prince  royal  and 
the  princess  were  arranged  separately.  When  the  officers 
had  ascertained  that  the  articles  accorded  with  the  lists, 
their  own  attendants  and  two  of  my  men  carried  them  to 
the  palace.  Among  the  presents  were  a  number  of  arti- 
cles which  had  been  kindly  contributed  by  my  friends  at 
home,  and  though  in  many  instances  of  simple  and  inex- 
pensive material,  their  value  was  enhanced  by  the  beauti- 
ful forms  into  which  they  had  been  wrought  by  skillful  and 
industrious  hands. 

As  soon  as  the  officers  had  left  me,  I  returned  to  my  ex- 
periments, having  added  to  my  other  acids  a  bottle  of  weak 
vinegar.  About  four  o'clock  M.  Laborde  and  two  officers 

E  E 


434  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xiv. 

of  the  palace  arrived.  The  officers  had  been  sent  by  the 
queen  to  invite  me  to  see  a  bull-fight,  in  the  court-yard  of 
the  palace,  that  afternoon.  I  acknowledged  the  kindness  of 
her  majesty  in  inviting  me,  but  begged  to  be  excused.  At 
sunset  three  officers  came  from  the  queen,  to  thank  me  for 
the  presents  from  the  governor  of  Mauritius,  and  those  from 
myself.  They  said  the  queen  was  much  pleased  with  the 
portraits.  They  also  brought  a  similar  message  from  the 
prince  and  princess.  "When  they  returned,  I  repeated  my 
apology  for  not  going  to  see  the  bull-fight. 

Soon  after  they  were  gone  another  party  of  visitors  were 
announced.  When  they  entered,  a  respectable  matronly- 
looking  woman  said  she  had  been  waiting  for  an  opportu- 
nity of  seeing  me  ever  since  my  arrival,  to  ask  if  I  had  any 
medicine  I  could  give  her  for  her  son,  now  seventeen  years 
of  age,  who  had  been  afflicted  with  leprosy  five  years.  She 
addfcd  that  she  had  tried  every  kind  of  native  medicine,  but 
in  vain.  I  told  her  I  sympathized  with  her  in  the  affliction, 
but  feared  I  had  no  medicine  that  would  cure  that  inveter- 
ate disease.  She  wept  much,  and  her  husband  was  also 
greatly  affected,  saying,  "  Then  there  is  no  remedy."  At 
length  she  said  she  must  hope  in  the  goodness  of  God,  and 
be  grateful  that  her  other  three  children  were  free.  She 
left  me  soon  afterward ;  and  in  the  evening  the  queen's  sec- 
retary sent  for  the  presents  for  the  other  chiefs. 

Before  making  my  appearance  the  next  morning,  one  of  * 
my  patients  was  waiting  outside  in  his  palanquin ;  yet  all 
the  time  I  could  secure  I  employed  in  trying,  by  experi- 
ments, to  find  a  substitute  for  the  missing  acid.  I  succeed- 
ed best  with  the  vinegar ;  with  tartaric  acid  I  only  obtained 
a  faint  reddish  image. 

Early  the  following  morning  an  aid-de-camp  of  the  prince 
came  to  know  when  I  should  be  ready  to  take  the  likeness. 
I  took  him  into  the  room  to  see  the  camera  and  the  chemi- 
cals, etc.,  and  told  him  that  one  bottle  was  missing,  but  that 


CHAP.  xiv.  INVITATION  TO  A  FETE  AT  THE  PALACE.          435 

as  soon  as  I  was  ready  I  would  inform  the  prince.  After 
breakfast  the  queen's  secretary  came  to  let  me'  know  that 
there  would  be  a  ball  or  dance,  in  the  presence  of  the  queen, 
on  the  following  day,  and  that  I  was  invited  to  be  present. 
He  said  the  queen  was  pleased  with  my  visit;  and  he  in- 
quired when  I  should  begin  with  the  likenesses,  as  both  the 
prince  and  princess  proposed  to  come  on  Friday,  and  he 
hoped  I  should  be  ready  then. 

While  we  were  talking  one  of  the  chief  officers  of  the 
palace  came  and  asked  toe  to  go  and  see  his  wife,  who  was 
an  invalid.  I  accompanied  him  to  his  residence,  a  nice 
comfortable  two-storied  house  built  of  wood,  with  sleeping- 
rooms  up  stairs.  Soon  after  our  arrival  his  wife,  attended 
by  a  female  domestic,  came  down  stairs  into  the  pleasant, 
neatly-furnished  room  in  which  we  were  waiting.  After  a 
short  conversation  I  said  I  thought  I  had  some  medicine 
that  would  afford  her  relief;  and,  as  the  chief  returned  with 
me,  I  gave  him  a  supply  for  her  use.  The  friends  who  vis- 
ited me  in  the  evening  were  equally  astonished  and  de- 
lighted with  this  chief's  coming  to  me.  Later  in  the  day 
he  brought  me  a  turtle  as  a  present,  and  said  he  would 
come  and  live  in  a  house  very  near,  in  order  that  I  might 
see  his  wife  often. 

On  Thursday,  September  18th,  I  was  early  at  work  with 
my  camera,  but  was  obliged  to  leave  off,  as  I  expected  a 
messenger  from  the  palace.  Soon  after  twelve  I  was  sent 
for,  and  followed  the  messenger.  The  road  to  the  palace 
was  literally  thronged,  and  the  walls  of  the  inclosures  round 
the  houses  were  surmounted  by  the  heads  and  shoulders  of 
people  standing  inside,  two  or  three  deep,  chiefly  of  women 
in  holiday  costume.  The  roofs  of  the  buildings  overlook- 
ing the  palace  yard  were  also  thronged  with  spectators. 

All  the  chiefs  assembled  on  this  occasion  were  in  Arabic 
costume,  wearing  long  loose  robes  of  green,  yellow,  white, 
or  red ;  and  turbans  and  sashes  of  every  variety  of  color, 


436  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  xiv. 

•with  a  profusion  of  jewelry.  M.  Laborde  and  his  son  were 
dressed  in  scarlet  and  orange  dresses,  with  immense  turbans 
to  match,  and  slippers  turned  up,  with  pointed  toes.  They 
were  accompanied  by  the  priest  and  two  Frenchmen  who 
had  recently  come  from  Tamatave  to  thank  the  queen  for 
the  respect  shown  to  the  memory  of  the  late  M.  de  Las- 
telle.  After  waiting  a  short  time  on  the  outside  we  entered 
the  large  court  before  the  palace,  when  the  band  played  the 
national  air,  and  the  soldiers  presented  arms.  The  queen 
and  her  court,  sixty  or  seventy  persons,  occupied  the  large 
open  veranda  or  balcony  in  the  centre  of  the  palace.  The 
queen  sat  beneath  the  large  scarlet  umbrella  and  wore  the 
same  lamba  as  on  my  former  visit  to  the  palace,  but  a 
smaller,  lighter  crown,  something  like  a  coronet  of  gold  on 
a  scarlet  velvet  cap.  All  the  members  of  the  court  were 
in  Arab  costume.  The  prince  wore  an  orange-colored  silk 
robe,  and  a  green  silk  turban,  with  a  gold  crescent  in  the 
centre. 

The  Frenchmen  and  myself  were  directed  to  chairs  on 
the  left  in  the  shade ;  and  beyond  the  seats  we  occupied, 
on  the  same  side,  sat  a  large  number  of  native  women. 
The  officers  were  seated  along  immediately  in  front  of  the 
queen,  and  a  number  of  the  members  of  the  court  sat  on  the 
right  opposite  to  us.  The  queen's  band  and  the  prince's 
band  were  ranged  on  the  right  side  of  the  square,  beyond 
the  members  of  the  court.  Behind  them  sat  a  large  com- 
pany of  singing  women,  in  front  of  whom  stood  three  or 
four  men  blowing  the  turbo,  or  trumpet  shell,  and  making 
a  kind  of  bass  to  the  women's  soft  and  monotonous  music 
in  singing.  The  farther  end  of  the  court  was  filled  with 
spectators,  and  the  outside  beyond  was  crowded  with  lines 
of  lookers-on  standing  one  above  the  other. 

The  dancing  was  commenced  by  the  Sakalavas,  inhabi- 
tants of  the  western  parts  of  the  island.  The  Sakalava  band 
of  native  instruments  included  a  large  drum  hollowed  out 


CHAP.  xiv.  THE  SAKALAVA  WAR-DANCE.  437 

of  a  solid  piece  of  wood,  with  several  smaller  ones,  and  tom- 
toms or  tambourines,  apparently  of  Asiatic  origin,  the  drum 
exactly  resembling  those  I  had  seen  in  Ceylon.  Four  men 
arrayed  as  warriors,  wearing  singularly-shaped  scarlet  caps, 
having  a  broad  "scarlet  lappet  hanging  down  behind,  with 
muskets  in  their  hands,  and  powder-horns  slung  at  their 
sides,  and  the  Malagasy  ornament  or  charm  of  silver  croco- 
diles' teeth  fastened  in  front  of  their  girdles  or  sashes,  fol- 
lowed this  band,  led  by  a  sort  of  chief,  whose  business  seem- 
ed to  be  to  indicate  the  movements  of  the  dance.  The  danc- 
ers were  tall,  light-made  men.  Commencing  their  perform- 
ance as  soon  as  they  entered  the  court,  they  continued  pass- 
ing from  side  to  side  of  the  open  space  in  the  centre,  making 
a  sort  of  zigzag  course  until  they  came  immediately  in  front 
of  the  queen.  The  musicians  then  gave  three  or  four  loud 
strokes  on  the  large  drum,  while  the  dancers  bowed  before 
her  majesty,  and  then  retired  to  the  side. 

These  were  followed  by  four  or  five  other  sets  of  Saka- 
lava  dancers  of  four  each,  who,  entering  by  the  gate,  danced 
along,  each  party  with  a  different  figure  or  step,  until  they 
came  before  the  queen,  when  they  bowed  and  retired.  In 
addition  to  the  musket  in  the  right  hand,  one  or  two  of  the 
sets  held  a  silk  handkerchief  or  small  scarf  in  the  left.  Their 
movements  were  light  and  easy ;  but  for  the  most  part  meas- 
ured and  slow,  except  in  those  passages  which  appeared  de- 
signed to  represent  the  more  exciting  movements  of  battle, 
the  assault,  the  strife,  the  pursuit,  and  the  triumph.  There 
was  no  shouting,  and  even  these  movements,  though  the 
muskets  were  sometimes  thrown  up  in  the  air  and  caught 
as  they  fell,  were  restrained  and  moderate,  according  but 
little  with  the  ideas  we  are  accustomed  to  associate  with  the 
war-dance  of  the  savage ;  and  had  any  caterer  for  public 
amusement  in  Europe  been  present,  the  Sakalava  waltz 
might  perhaps  have  been  transferred  to  more  civilized  as- 
semblies. 


438  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xiv. 

After  the  Sakalava  dance,  about  a  hundred  females, 
connected,  as  I  inferred,  from  their  air,  their  apparel,  and 
the  careful  and  elaborate  dressing  of  their  hair,  with  the 
officers  and  other  respectable  families  of  the  capital,  entered 
the  open  space.  They  ranged  themselves  three  abreast  and 
facing  the  queen,  in  a  sort  of  open  column.  The  line  or 
column  consisted  of  thirty-four  successive  threes.  As  soon 
as  they  were  in  position,  they  slipped  the  lambas  or  scarfs 
from  their  shoulders  down  to  their  waists,  and  thus  exhib- 
ited their  rich  velvet,  satin,  silk,  and  muslin  dresses,  many 
of  them  trimmed  about  the  body  and  sleeves  with  gold.  The 
queen's  band  commenced  a  slow  soft  native  tune.  A  danc- 
ing-master at  the  head  of  the  column,  and  facing  the  queen, 
signaled  the  movements,  and  the  dancing  commenced — if 
dancing  it  could  be  called  in  which  the  feet  covered  by  the 
flowing  lamba  appeared  scarcely  to  move,  for  each  dancer 
remained  on  the  same  spot,  and  the  arms  chiefly  answered 
in  easy  and  graceful  motion  to  the  measure  of  the  music. 
There  was  not  a  really  fair  face  among  them,  though  none 
were  very  dark.  The  figure  and  countenance  of  many  were 
more  finely  formed  than  those  of  lower  grade,  and  numbers 
of  them  might  have  been  termed  handsome.  The  music 
consisted  entirely  of  original  native  tunes  remarkably  soft 
and  simple.  After  two  or  three  dances  they  bowed  to  the 
sovereign  and  retired.  Such  were  the  native  dances  of  the 
day. 

Five  very  juvenile  couples,  dressed  in  silk  and  muslin, 
now  came  forward.  They  were  the  children  of  the  high 
officers  of  the  government,  and  danced  exceedingly  well  in 
the  European  style,  to  European  tunes.  They  also  made 
their  bow  to  the  queen,  and  then  retired. 

Eight  couples  of  young  men  and  women  then  rose  from 
the  court  circle  and  came  to  the  centre.  The  ladies  were 
gorgeously  attired  in  silk  and  satin,  with  a  profusion  of  head 
ornaments,  pearls  and  other  necklaces,  and  bracelets.  The 


CHAP.  xiv.       DANCING  OF  THE  YOUNG  NOBLES.  430 

men  all  wore  silk  Spanish,  dresses,  short  jackets  with  slashed 
sleeves,  silk  trowsers,  slashed,  and  shoes  to  match,  and  em- 
broidered caps  adorned  with  ostrich  feathers.  The  son  of 
Eadama's  sister,  a  fine  young  man  about  twenty-five,  and 
the  daughter  of  Prince  Eamonja  were  the  first  couple,  and 
led  the  dance.  Dancing  seemed  to  be  grave  work  with  them 
all.  I  rarely  saw  more  than  a  social  smile,  and  should  think 
scarcely  a  dozen  words  were  exchanged  by  the  dancers,  who, 
while  dancing,  seemed  to  be  wholly  absorbed  with  the  figure 
and  the  step.  The  music  was  European,  and  so  were  the 
dances. 

Soon  after  these  had  bowed  to  the  queen  and  resumed 
their  seats,  seven  couples  of  the  younger  members  of  the 
royal  and  noble  families  came  forward.  Their  ages  might 
range  between  fifteen  and  eighteen.  The  son  of  Prince  Kam- 
boasalama,  the  handsomest  youth  I  had  seen,  was  splendidly 
dressed  in  a  suit  of  scarlet  and  gold,  with  a  cap  of  the  same, 
and  ostrich-plume.  The  son  of  the  proprietor  of  the  house 
in  which  the  queen  had  given  her  dinner  and  an  interesting- 
looking  young  girl  led  off  the  dance.  The  youth  was 
dressed  in  jacket  and  pantaloons  of  green  velvet  studded 
with  gold,  over  which  hung  a  mantle  of  purple  velvet  em- 
broidered with  a  deep  gold  border.  His  partner  also  wore 
a  dress  of  purple  velvet  with  gold  embroidery.  The  dress 
of  the  remaining  couples  was  equally  rich  and  splendid. 

The  Frenchmen  seemed  to  be  highly  gratified  with  the 
gorgeous  spectacle,  which  continued  until  nearly  four 
o'clock ;  when  the  dancing  ceased  and  the  court  retired. 
When  the  nobles  had  nearly  all  left  the  balcony,  the  prince 
rose  and  led  his  mother,  who  seemed  glad  of  the  support  of 
his  arm,  into  the  palace ;  while  we,  mingling  with  the  crowd 
of  officers  and  guests  moving  toward  the  gate,  bowed  and 
departed. 

It  was  a  scene  which  it  was  perhaps  well  to  witness  once 
in  a  lifetime.  It  appeared  something  like  the  reality  of 


440  .      'VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xiv. 

what  the  gorgeous  and  imposing  pageants  of  our  theatres 
are  reported  to  represent ;  destitute,  indeed,  of  the  flood  of 
light,  and  all  those  rich  and  gay  accompaniments  with  which 
artistic  skill  and  taste  surround  such  exhibitions,  but  en- 
circled by  the  grander  scenery  of  nature,  accompanied  by  a 
cloudless  sky,  and  illuminated  by  a  tropic  sun.  The  whole 
seemed  to  belong  to  regions  resembling  those 

"Where  the  gorgeous  East  with  richest  hand 
Showers  on  her  kings  barbaric  pearls  and  gold." 

The  men  and  women  were  not  actors ;  their  decorations 
were  not  tinsel.  It  seemed  their  highest  style  of  dress  and 
most  exalted  entertainment;  yet  I  felt  a  sort  of  regret  as  I 
gazed  on  the  manly  forms,  the  bold  and  open  foreheads, 
the  quick,  keen,  glancing  eyes  of  the  noble  youths  before 
me,  and  thought  of  what,  with  education,  they  might  have 
achieved ;  and  if  the  time  and  the  place  had  been  suitable 
for  the  expression  of  opinion  on  the  spectacle  I  had  wit- 
nessed, I  might  perhaps  have  said  that  proficiency  in  dancing 
was  not  the  highest  excellence  of  princes,  and  that,  without 
discarding  amusement,  their  constant  aim  should  be  to  learn 
how  nations  are  made  great.  More  than  once  I  longed  for 
the  .camera,  that  I  might  have  transmitted  to  my  port-folio 
some  of  the  splendid  and  beautiful  groups  I  had'  seen. 


CHAP.  xv.  VISIT  FROM  THE  PlilNCE.  441 


CHAPTER  XV. 

Visit  from  the  Prince. — Letter  to  the  Queen. — Message  and  Presents  from 
the  Queen. — Eegrets  on  account  of  my  approaching  Departure. — Visits 
to  the  Sick. — Arrangements  of  the  native  Dwellings. — Social  Affec- 
tions.— Portrait  of  the  Prince. — Conversations  with  the  Prince. — Aston- 
ishment and  Delight  of  the  Prince  and  Princess  with  the  Photographic 
Process. — Breakfast  with  the  Prince  and  Princess.  —  Conversation. — 
Portraits  of  Members  of  the  Malagasy  Court. — Proposal  of  the  Prince 
and  Princess  and  their  Friends  to  spend  the  last  Evening  of  my  Stay  in 
the  Capital  at  my  House. — The  Prince's  Band. — Interesting  Conversa- 
tion.— Why  the  People  of  England  love  their  Queen. — Security  of  God's 
Protection.  —  Desire  of  the  Youth  of  the  Country  after  Knowledge. — 
Possibility  of  a  future* College  in  the  Capital. — Departure  of  the  Guests. 
— Intercourse  with  beloved  Friends. — Bearers  provided  by  the  Queen. — 
Conversation  and  refined  Attention  of  the  Prince. — Departure  from  the 
Capital  accompanied  by  the  Prince  and  Nobles. — Affecting  Spectacle  of 
a  Prisoner. — Parting  with  the  Prince  and  his  Friends. — Reflections  on 
the  Visit. — Recent  Events. — Sufferings  and  Constaacy  of  the  Christians. 
— Martyrdom  in  1849. — Recollections  of  the  Prince. — Estimate  of  his 
Character. 

AFTER  witnessing  this  novel  and  exciting  spectacle  I  no 
sooner  reached  my  own  residence  than,  slipping  on  my 
blouse,  I  began  experimentalizing  again,  this  time  with  a 
bottle  of  vinegar  which  the  prince  had  sent  me  in  the 
morning,  as  he  understood  I  wanted  acid:  but  the  light 
was  too  far  gone  before  I  could  make  a  fair  trial.  Appli- 
cations for  medicine  and  visits  from  friends  occupied  the 
evening. 

Early  in  the  morning  I  resumed  my  occupations,  but 
failed  in  compounding  a  good  developing  mixture.  While 
I4was  employed  in  this  manner  the  prince  paid  me  a  visit, 
he  was  followed  soon  afterward  by  the  queen's  secretary. 
They  examined  the  camera  and  the  different  parts  of  the 


442  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xv. 

apparatus  with  much  attention  and  interest.  After  which 
they  sat  down  with  me  to  my  frugal  breakfast,  at  which 
nothing  appeared  more  palatable  to  my  guests  than  some 
slices  of  English  ham.  Our  meal  being  concluded  we  had 
a  long  and  grave  conversation,  in  the  course  of  which  the 
approaching  termination  of  the  period  to  which  my  visit 
was  to  extend  was  adverted  to,  and,  as  it  seemed  desirable 
that  my  stay  should  be  prolonged  through  the  bad  season, 
I  wrote  a  letter  to  the  queen,  stating  my  apprehension  of 
the  fever  in  the  lower  country,  the  healthy  season  being 
now  past,  and  asking,  on  that  account,  permission  to  pro- 
long my  visit  to  nine  months,  viz.,  until  the  good  season  of 
the  following  year. 

During  the  forenoon  my  guests  left  me,  and,  according 
to  their  suggestions,  I  afterward  sent  my  letter  to  the 
prince,  as  they  said  this  was  a  lucky  day.  About  an  hour 
afterward  some  officers  came  from  the  palace  to  say  that 
the  queen  had  received  my  letter,  and  that  she  thought  the 
time  she  had  mentioned  was  sufficient  for  a  visit ;  and  ap- 
peared to  wish  to  know  whether  I  had  any  other  objects  or 
reasons  for  desiring  to  prolong  my  stay.  I  assigned  no  oth- 
er reason  than  the  unhealthiness  of  the  season  and  the  dan- 
ger of  fever,  and  the  officers  departed.  In  little  more  than 
an  hour  they  returned,  and  stated  that  the  queen  desired 
them  to  say  she  was  much  pleased  with  my  visit,  and  with 
the  message  I  had  brought,  and  that  as  the  time  fixed  for 
the  duration  of  my  visit  had  nearly  expired  it  was  best  that 
I  should  return  as  near  that  time  as  I  could  arrange  my 
packages.  The  officers  asked  if  eight  days  would  be  suffi- 
cient. They  then  presented  me  with  a  number  of  beauti- 
ful silk  and  other  lambas  from  the  queen,  and  also  from 
the  prince  and  princess ;  and  said  the  queen  would  provide 
bearers  for  my  palanquin,  and  also  for  my  packages,  when 
I  was  ready ;  and  that  orders  would  be  sent  to  the  Govern- 
or of  Tamatave  to  give  me  ten  oxen  as  a  present  from  the 


CHAP.  xv.  REGRETS  ON  ACCOUNT  OF  MY  DEPARTURE.   443 

queen  to  myself,  and  twenty  oxen  as  a  present  to  the  Gov- 

'  ernor  of  Mauritius.     I  then  begged  to  thank  her  majesty 

for  her  kind  attentions  and  hospitality  and  the  presents  she 

had  given  me,  and  said  I  hoped  to  be  ready  in  eight  days. 

It  was  intimated  that  had  I  asked  for  a  shorter  time  it 
might  have  been  approved,  as  the  queen  had  directed  that 
Mr.  Cameron  should  be  told,  in  answer  to  his  letter  from 
the  Cape,  that  he  might  stay  six  months ;  but  I  had  asked 
to  extend  my  visit  to  ten  months.  I  said  I  should  be  un- 
willing to  return  in  the  midst  of  the  fever  season,  and 
therefore  thought  it  more  frank  to  ask  at  once  for  the  peri- 
od during  which  I  wished  to  stay,  as  I  would  rather  leave 
now  than  at  any  intermediate  time.  The  officers  then  left. 
I  knew  that  the  wife  of  the  chief  officer  had  experienced 
relief  from  her  sufferings  after  the  medicine  I  had  given 
her,  so  that  I  was  not  surprised  at  the  regret  he  seemed  to 
feel  on  account  of  the  message  he  had  to  deliver. 

I  had  a  long  and  deeply-affecting  conversation  with  the 
friends  who  visited  me  in  the  evening.  The  prospect  of 
my  approaching  departure  was  to  them  exceedingly  pain- 
ful ;  but  they  expressed  themselves  grateful  for  the  inter- 
course we  had  held,  and  promised  to  give  increased  dili- 
gence to  complete,  before  my  departure,  some  accounts  of 
the  principal  events  which  have  occurred  among  them  dur- 
ing the  last  twenty  years.  Many  of  them  urged  important 
inquiries  respecting  their  future  progress ;  and  the  grief  of 
all  at  the  prospect  of  my  departure  was  truly  distressing. 
I  endeavored  to  encourage  them,  and  offered  such  advice 
as  seemed  best  suited  to  their  peculiar  circumstances. 

The  next  day  I  employed  myself,  when  not  occupied 
with  visitors  and  applicants  for  medicine,  in  experiments ; 
and  in  the  afternoon,  after  adding  full  one  third  part  of  the 
vinegar  to  the  ordinary  pyrogallic  mixture,  I  succeeded' in 
getting  a  tolerably  good  negative  of  the  young  chief  who 
had  accompanied  me  from  Tamatave.  I  also  received  a 


Ui  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xv. 

note  saying  that  the  prince  and  princess  would  visit  me  on 
Monday.  The  evening  was  occupied  with  a  succession  of 
visitors,  who  generally  came  in  companies  of  from  nine  to 
twelve  persons,  frequently  accompanied  by  their  children. 
Many  of  the  women  wept  when  they  took  leave  of  me ;  and 
very  late  it  was  before  I  found  myself  alone. 

At  midnight  I  had  been  called  out  of  bed  to  give  med- 
icine to  an  aid-de-camp  of  the  prince ;  and  early  in  the 
morning  an  officer  of  the  palace  came  to  request  me  to  visit 
an  aid-de-camp  of  the  commander-in-chief.  I  went  with 
the  officer,  who  was  saluted  with  great  respect  as  we  passed 
along,  and  on  reaching  the  house,  a  respectable  building, 
we  passed  a  female  slave  spinning  cotton  as  she  watched  at 
the  foot  of  the  stairs,  and  ascended  to  the  sick  man's  cham- 
ber. The  young  man  was  lying  on  a  nice  clean  bed  near 
an  open  window,  a  friend  supporting  his  raised-up  head, 
and  his  young  wife  wiping  the  perspiration  from  his  tem- 
ples; while  his  mother  and  a  number  of  friends  sat  around. 
The  young  man  was  suffering  great  pain  from  rheumatic 
fever,  and  from  the  effects  of  some  very  powerful  native 
medicine  which  he  had  taken.  After  talking  with  him 
some  time,  through  a  kind  and  sympathizing  interpreter,  a 
truly  good  man,  we  received  a  visit  from  the  chief  whose 
maladies  I  had  been  for  some  time  dressing  and  bandaging 
at  intervals.  I  told  the  young  man  I  would  send  him 
some  medicine,  and  then  went  with  one  of  the  chief  officers 
of  the  palace  to  visit  his  wife,  who  had  been  much  better 
after  taking  the  medicine  I  had  given.  I  then  went  to  an- 
other part  of  the  capital  to  see  the  mother  of  two  young 
officers  of  the  palace,  and  to  show  the  attendants  how  to 
dress  a  blister  which  I  had  applied  on  the  previous  day. 
The  family  seemed  rejoiced  as  they  told  me  their  mother 
felt  greatly  relieved.  I  returned  to  breakfast,  which  I  had 
scarcely  finished  when  the  son  of  one  of  the  chief  judges 
came  to  ask  me  to  go  and  see  his  mother.  I  walked  with 


CHAP.  xv.         INTERIOR  OF  THE  NATIVE  HOUSES.  445 

him  to  another  part  of  the  city,  and  he  returned  with  me 
for  some  medicine  for  the  patient. 

My  visits  to  the  sick  have  given  me  peculiar  opportuni- 
ties of  becoming  acquainted  with  the  social  condition  of  the 
people,  and  I  have  been  much  impressed  with  the  comfort 
and  convenience  of  their  dwellings,  the  separation  and  se- 
clusion of  their  sleeping-rooms,  and  the  appropriate  and 
sometimes  even  elegant  manner  in  which  they  are  fur- 
nished. I  believe  most  of  the  natives  still  sit  on  the  ground 
at  their  meals,  but  there  is  generally  a  table  and  chairs  in 
the  open  room  of  the  house.  Then  in  the  sleeping-rooms, 
though  some  of  the  sleeping-places  consist  of  a  number  of 
finely-woven  mats  laid  on  the  floor,  there  was  generally  a 
neat  four-post  bedstead,  with  a  bed  at  the  end  of  the  room 
opposite  the  window,  the  bed  and  the  window  being  both 
screened  by  white  muslin  curtains.  A  table,  with  some- 
times white  jugs,  cups  and  saucers,  and  glasses  upon  it,  and 
a  looking-glass  over  it,  generally  occupies  one  side  of  the 
room,  and  chairs  and  perhaps  trunks  the  other,  besides  many 
other  little  conveniences  which  I  did  not  expect  to  see. 
But  more  pleasing  still  was  the  kind,  social,  and  affection- 
ate feeling  which  the  several  members  of  the  family  mani- 
fested toward  each  other,  in  those  instances  which  came  un- 
der my  notice.  The  sons,  even  when  young  men,  seemed 
to  cherish  great  affection  for  their  mothers,  and  to  treat 
them  with  marked  attention  and  respect.  This  is  a  very 
general  feeling,  to  which  expression  is  often  given  in  a  sim- 
ple and  gratifying  manner.  It  is  a  custom  for  children  oc- 
casionally to  present  to  their  mothers  a  piece  of  money, 
called  "Fofon  damosina,"  literally  fragrance  of  the  back, 
as  a  sort  of  grateful  acknowledgment  for  the  mother's  kind- 
ness when  the  infant  was  carried  on  the  back.  Several 
families  of  respectability  resided  near  my  house,  and  I  no- 
ticed that  the  mistress  of  the  house  and  her  daughters,  ar- 
rayed in  clean  white  dresses,  usually  walked  out  about  four 


446  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xv. 

o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  followed  by  a  number  of  slaves, 
and  returned  about  sunset.  I  was  told  that,  on  these  occa- 
sions, they  generally  paid  visits  to  their  friends  or  acquaint- 
ances. I  had  been  more  than  usually  alone  during  the  day, 
but  in  the  evening  many  friends  came,  uttering  their  deep 
sorrow  at  the  prospect  of  my  leaving  so  soon,  yet  also  ex- 
pressing their  confidence  in  God,  that  all  would  eventually 
prove  for  the  best. 

Monday,  22d.  I  was  up  by  daybreak,  got  my  camera  out, 
and  some  fine  matting  nailed  up  as  a  sort  of  background. 
By  saven  o'clock  the  prince  arrived.  He  said  the  princess 
regretted  her  inability  to  come,  as  she  was  suffering  from  a 
swelled  face.  He  then  assured  me  of  the  deepest  regret  felt 
by  them  both  that  my  stay  was  to  be  so  short,  as  my  visit 
had  afforded  them  much  pleasure.  On  this  subject  he 
spoke  for  some  time,  and  with  much  feeling.  He  said  the 
princess  would  come  as  soon  as  she  was  well,  and  asked  if 
I  would  try  to  take  his  likeness  then.  It  was  a  fine  clear 
morning.  He  took  his  seat.  I  gave  more  than  a  minute's 
exposure  to  the  plate,  and  then  developed  with  my  pyro- 
gallic  and  vinegar  mixture;  when,  to  my  equal  surprise 
and  delight,  a  tolerably  good  negative  was  the  result.  The 
prince  examined  it  by  transmitted  light,  and  was  exceed- 
ingly pleased.  He  took  his  seat  again,  and  I  obtained  a 
second  negative,  equally  good,  and  much  to  his  satisfaction. 
The  prince  and  one  of  his  aids-de-camp  and  the  queen's 
secretary  then  sat  down  with  me  to  breakfast.  The  fore- 
noon was  afterward  spent  in  earnest  conversation.  Much 
was  said  about  my  not  remaining  longer  among  them. 
They  said  the  queen  continued  to  express  herself  pleased 
with  my  visit,  and  all  that  she  had  heard  respecting  me; 
and  also  that,  in  reference  to  returning  when  the  time  .speci- 
fied should  arrive,  I  had  not  disputed  the  matter  with  the 
officers.  I  said  I  should  much  rather  travel  through  the 
country  now,  than  at  any  other  time  during  the  ensuing 


CHAP.  xv.  THE  FUTURE  PROSPERITY  OF  MADAGASCAR.    447 

three  or  even  six  months ;  and  therefore,  as  the  queen 
thought  it  better  that  I  should  not  remain  till  the  summer 
of  next  y.ear,  I  had  not  sought  to  prolong  my  stay  for  any 
shorter  period,  but  should  cheerfully  return  to  the  home  I 
had  only  left  for  a  season,  and  where  my  arrival  would  be 
cordially  welcomed. 

The  prince  then  adverted  to  graver  matters ;  and,  allud- 
ing to  a  report  which  it  was  said  had  been  recently  brought 
to  the  capital,  that  the  English  and  French  were  both  com- 
ing to  attack  Madagascar  during  the  ensuing  year,  he  said, 
"  Why  is  this?  Who  makes  these  reports?  Why  should 
we  be  attacked,  and  our  country  taken  from  us?  What 
can  we  do  to  prevent  our  country  being  seized,  and  our- 
selves made  slaves?"  I  replied  that  I  did  not  know  who 
brought  the  reports  alluded  to,  but  believed  there  was  no 
actual  danger  of  such  a  calamity ;  for  I  was  sure  that  if 
England  had  any  cause  of  complaint  against  them  she 
would  let  them  know,  and  seek  its  removal  by  peaceable 
means,  before  sending  to  attack  them. 

The  prince  afterward  said,  "What  can  we  do  to  promote 
the  prosperity  and  stability  of  the  nation,  that  Madagascar 
may  become  like  other  countries  ?"  I  replied,  "  The  pros- 
perity and  stability  of  Madagascar  depend  upon  yourselves. 
The  nation  will  be  what  you  yourselves  make  it.  Others 
may  aid  your  upward  or  downward  course,  but  you  must 
determine  the  direction  of  that  course.  I  do  not  know,  but 
my  opinion  is,  that  if  you  lose  your  country  it  will  be  be- 
cause you  are  not  true  to  yourselves;  it  will  be  because 
you  will  have  been  betrayed  by  your  own  selves,  or  have 
forfeited  your  just  and  proper  advantages.  Prosperity  can 
not  be  provided  for  you  by  others ;  it  must  be*  your  own 
achievement,  if  you  ever  possess  it." 

"How  can  we  attain  it?"  the  prince  inquired.  I  an- 
swered, "  With  the  blessing  of  God  you  may  attain  it  by 
intelligence,  integrity,  and  justice,  energy  and  self-reliance. 


US  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xv. 

Integrity  or  truthfulness  will  inspire  confidence,  encourage 
industry,  and  insure  unity  and  co-operation."  He  said  he 
most  earnestly  desired  knowledge,  and  regretted  that  he 
could  not  read  English  books  so  as  to  understand  them 
readily.  I  told  him.  I  regretted  it  also,  but  congratulated 
him  upon  the  attainments  which,  under  great  disadvantages, 
he  had  already  made ;  and  I  urged  and  encouraged  him  to 
persevere,  adding-  that,  from  the  teachings  of  history,  and 
the  maxims  of  wisdom  embodied  in  that  language,  he  might 
learn  the  true  sources  of  the  prosperity  of  nations.  I  stated 
that  England  was  once  less  enlightened  and  less  civilized 
than  Madagascar  at  the  present  time ;  but  that  by  gradual 
yet  steady  progress  through  a  long  series  of  years,  and  many 
severe  ordeals,  she  had  attained  the  position  which  she  now 
occupied  among  the  nations ;  and  why  should  not  a  simi- 
lar course  issue  in  corresponding  results  elsewhere  ?  The 
officer  who  was  with  us,  and  who  had  been  seven  years  at 
school  in  England  when  a  youth,  observed  that  such  in- 
deed had  been  the  past  of  England's  progress. 

In  reply  to  farther  inquiries  from  the  prince  as  to  the 
best  means  of  promoting  the  progress  of  the  people,  I  said, 
"Seek  to  enlighten  them;  promote  education  to  the  ut- 
most. Don't  be  afraid  of  the  people  knowing  too  much. 
Those  who  are  the  best  informed  will  be  the  most  efficient 
members  of  the  community ;  they  will  turn  their  own  re- 
sources to  the  best  account ;  and  they  will  render  the  best 
service  to  the  state.  An  ignorant  people  can  only  be  gov- 
erned by  force;  an  enlightened  people  by  reason.  The 
people  that  understand  the  laws  best,  if  they  are  just  laws, 
will  be  the  most  ready  to  obey  them.  Prosperity,"  I  add- 
ed, "is  promoted  by  encouraging  industry,  and  protecting 
each  man  in  tKe  enjoyment  of  the  fruits  of  his  own  labor. 
This  will  make  the  people  contented ;  and  a  contented  peo- 
ple are  always  a  loyal  people.  Increase  the  productions 
of  your  own  country,  and  they  will  put  you  in  possession 


CHAP.  xv.       CONVERSATIONS  WITH  THE  PRINCE.  449 

of  the  products  of  other  countries.  Let  your  laws  be  just, 
and  then  the  good  in  the  community  will  respect  and  obey 
them,  and  help  you  to  deter  the  bad  from  infringing  them." 

"But,"  said  the  prince,  "suppose  we  try  to 'do  this,  and 
the  nation  does  not  prosper,  will  they  not  say  that  the  gov- 
ernment is  to  blame  ?"  I  said,  "  There  are  in  every  country 
people  who  are  always  ready  to  blame  their  government 
when  they  do  not  prosper.  But  if  your  laws  are  just  and 
wise,  and  those  who  administer  them  honest,  the  enlighten- 
ed and  the  upright  in  the  community  will  be  as  ready  to  sup- 
port you  in  adversity  as  in  prosperity ;  and  their  confidence 
will  be  your  strength.  The  loyalty  of  the  people,"  I  also 
added,  "  depends  much  upon  the  officers  who  administer,  as 
well  as  the  sovereign  who  makes  laws,  and  one  of  the  wis- 
est of  kings  has  said,  '  a  wicked  person  shall  not  stand  be- 
fore me.'  "  The  prince  replied,  "  I  know  that.  I  am  quite 
convinced  of  that." 

It  was  past  noon  when  the  prince  and  his  companions  left 
me ;  and  I  have  repeated  the  foregoing  only  as  a  specimen 
of  the  kind  of  conversation  which  he  appeared  anxious  to 
introduce  as  often  as  opportunity  offered.  Other  topics 
equally  important  to  the  people,  and  more  intimately  con- 
nected with  himself  personally,  as  well  as  relating  to  the  pres- 
ent and  the  future  welfare  of  his  country,  were  often  intro- 
duced by  the  prince  in  the  course  of  conversation.  Besides 
my  lively  interest  in  this  young  prince,  and  which  every 
interview  deepened,  I  can  not  but  hope  that  the  intercourse 
I  had  with  him,  more  frequent  and  unreserved  than  with 
any  other  individual,  may  have  been  of  some  advantage  to 
him,  while  it  is  a  source  of  grateful  remembrance  to  myself. 

In  the  evening,  a  number  of  the  chief  men  among  my 
friends  came  and  proposed  many  inquiries  respecting  modes 
of  procedure  most  suitable  for  them  to  adopt  in  their  social 
capacity,  and  in  the  relations  they  sustained  toward  each 
other ;  and  it  was  past  midnight  when  they  departed. 

F  F 


450  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xv. 

By  daybreak  the  next  morning  I  had  commenced  my 
preparations,  and  brought  out  my  camera ;  and  about  seven 
o'clock  the  prince  and  princess  came.  I  had  not  expected 
them  so  early.  On  this  occasion  the  covering  of  the  prin- 
cess's palanquin,  fixed  something  like  the  hood  of  a  chaise, 
was  thrown  back.  The  prince  assisted  her  to  step  out,  and 
then  led  her  into  the  house  to  show  her  the  apparatus  and 
materials.  I  then  invited  the  princess  and  her  three  female 
companions  or  attendants  into  my  dwelling-house,  while  I 
prepared  the  chemicals.  When  I  was  ready,  the  princess, 
having  changed  her  headdress,  came  out  into  the  court-yard. 
She  wore  an  olive-green  silk  dress,  and  had  on  her  head  a 
sort  of  cap  composed  of  blue  ribbons,  with  a  gilt  Maltese 
cross  in  front ;  small  portions  of  her  hair,  very  neatly  braid- 
ed in  the  Malagasy  fashion,  appearing  about  her  temples  on 
each  side.  She  wore  also  a  rich  necklace  of  jewels,  with 
earrings  to  match.  I  asked  her  to  sit  as  much  at  ease  as 
possible.  Having  exposed  the  plate  nearly  a  minute,  I  then 
covered  the  lens,  and  told  her  it  was  finished.  As  I  was 
taking  it  back  to  the  house  the  prince  and  princess  asked  if 
they  might  come  in,  and,  accompanied  by  the  officer  from 
the  palace,  they  entered  with  me  into  the  dark  room.  They 
were  quite  astonished,  and  the  princess  could  not  restrain 
the  expression  of  her  surprise  and  wonder,  as  the  colorless 
plate  became  darkened,  and  the  picture  came  out  of  itself 
more  and  more  distinctly,  after  I  had  poured  the  transparent 
mixture  out  of  the  glass  on  its  surface.  Then,  when  I  held 
it  up,  and  they  saw  it  by  transmitted  light,  her  astonishment 
and  pleasure  were  still  more  manifest.  Officers  were  sta- 
tioned at  the  avenues  leading  to  the  yard  in  front  of  my 
house  to  prevent  persons  entering ;  but  when  the  princess 
came  out,  and  the  prince  said  it  was  so  like — it  was  the 
princess  herself — the  attendants  asked  me  if  they  might  see 
it.  I  was  obliged,  however,  to  refuse  their  request  for  fear 
of  accident. 


_;;-. 

THE  PBINCB  AHD  PBRJORSS  EOYAL  OF  MADAGASCAR. 


CHAP.  xv.  PORTRAITS  OF  THE  PRINCE  AND  PRINCESS.     453 

I  told  the  princess  I  would  take  a  full-length  portrait  if 
she  wished  it ;  and,  as  they  both  expressed  the  pleasure  it 
would  give  them,  I  prepared  one  of  my  large  plates — fif- 
teen inches  by  twelve — and,  having  fixed  a  sort  of  tempo- 
rary head-rest,  succeeded  in  obtaining  a  very  passable  neg- 
ative, with  which,  when  they  saw  it  developed,  they  were 
still  more  delighted  than  with  the  smaller  picture.  When 
it  was  thoroughly  washed  I  was  obliged  to  take  it  to  the 
door  to  let  the  attendants  look  at  it;  the  quickness  and 
quietness  with  which  it  had  been  done  seemed  so  inexpli- 
cable to  them  that  their  curiosity  was  irrepressible. 

I  then  told  my  visitors  that  if  they  wished  it  I  could  take 
both  their  portraits  together  in  one  picture.  They  express- 
ed their  pleasure  at  the  proposal,  and  I  prepared  according- 
ly. On  this  occasion  the  prince  wore  a  uniform,  blue  faced 
with  red,  and  ornamented  with  gold.  He  wore  also  a  star, 
and  the  national  belt  of  scarlet,  yellow,  and  green.  When 
the  prince  came  out  of  the  house  where  he  had  retired  with 
the  princess  I  noticed  that,  instead  of  holding  his  hat  in  his 
hand,  he  had  taken  up  a  book  which  was  lying  on  my  ta- 
ble, and  I  was  pleased  with  the  intimation  which  this  con- 
veyed, and  which  was  well  understood.  When  I  told  them 
to  stand  in  the  position  they  would  most  prefer  the  prince 
took  the  arm  of  the  princess  within  his  own,  saying  that 
was  the  manner  in  which  they  walked  together.  When  I 
had  adjusted  the  camera,  exposed  the  plate,  and  we  pro- 
ceeded to  the  dark  room,  their  previous  wonder  seemed  far 
surpassed  as  they  looked  and  saw  themselves  gradually  de- 
veloping, side  by  side,  with  all  the  accessories  and  details. 
The  distinctness  of  the  tones  in  the  princess's  necklace^  and 
the  bouquet  in  her  hand,  with  the  strong  relief  of  the  star 
in  the  prince's  breast,  and  the  book  he  held,  caused  them  to 
marvel  quite  as  much  as  the  features  of  their  countenances. 
They  had  moved  very  slightly,  and  the  photograph  was 
not  so  good  as  that  of  the  single  figures ;  but  it  was  passa- 


454  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xv. 

ble,  and  afforded  them  great  satisfaction.  I  then  took  a 
full-length  figure  of  the  prince  himself,  in  his  uniform  and 
cocked  hat.  It  came  out  tolerably  well;  the  figure  was 
more  easy  and  natural  than  those  previously  taken,  but  the 
face  not  so  good. 

I  had  no  screen  or  shade,  and  had  not  been  able  to  pro- 
vide any  better  place  for  my  sitters  than  in  the  open  air, 
on  the  western  or  shaded  side  of  my  house.  Toward  ten 
o'clock  the  sun  had  become  so  high  and  powerful  that  I 
could  not  proceed  without  more  arrangements  than  I  had 
then  time  to  make.  I  therefore  asked  my  visitors  to  re- 
main and  partake  of  some  refreshment ;  and,  breakfast  be- 
ing ready,  we  were  just  sitting  down  when  a  messenger 
came  from  the  palace  to  say  that  the  queen  had  inquired 
for  the  prince.  He  therefore  left,  but  returned  in  less  than 
half  an  hour.  We  all  felt  much  at  our  ease.  The  princess 
said  perhaps  the  queen  would  send  for  her ;  but,  if  so,  the 
likenesses  were  taken.  Our  breakfast,  though  very  plain, 
was  not  declined.  My  visitors  were  communicative  and 
agreeable.  The  princess  took  some  tea  and  biscuits,  and 
some  other  European  cakes,  sopping  her  biscuit  in  her  tea, 
and  apologizing  for  not  taking  any  thing  on  account  of  the 
pain  in  her  face.  They  both  repeated  their  expressions  of 
regret  that  I  was  to  leave  them  so  soon,  and  said  the  same 
feeling  was  shared  by  many  of  the  officers ;  that  it  was  not 
owing  to  any  thing  that  had  occurred  since  my  arrival,  but 
had  been  fixed  before  I  sent  my  application  to  prolong  my 
stay.  They  also  expressed  their  hopes  that  I  might  visit 
them  again.  I  repeated  my  thanks,  and  assured  them  that, 
from  the  expressions  of  good-will  they  had  so  uniformly 
given,  I  was  persuaded  that  my  prolonged  stay  would  have 
been  agreeable  to  them,  if,  on  other  accounts,  it  had  been 
desired. 

Adverting,  in  the  course  of  conversation,  to  the  rumor  of 
an  expected  attack  from  a  hostile  fleet  having  been  recently 


CHAP.  xv.  APPLICATIONS  FOR  PORTRAITS.  45r, 

brought  from  the  coast,  the  princess  remarked,  "We  are 
not  insurgents,  we  are  not  usurpers ;  we  are  the  descendants 
of  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  the  country.  Why  should  we 
not  be  left  in  peace  ?"  I  again  said  I  hoped  and  believed 
that  time  would  show  all  these  reports  to  have  been  un- 
founded, and  that  foreign  ships  would  only  come  as  friendly 
visitors  for  purposes  of  commerce,  which  would  promote 
the  prosperity  of  the  country. 

We  conversed  long  and  freely  on  subjects  corresponding 
with  those  on  which  I  had  talked  with  the  prince  the  day 
before ;  and  we  should  probably  have  continued  some  time 
longer,  had  not  one  of  the  officers,  who  had  come  in  a  richly 
embroidered  uniform,  expressed  a  wish  that  I  should  take 
his  likeness.  The  prince  and  princess,  with  their  attendants, 
left  about  noon ;  and  I  afterward  tried  to  gratify  the  officer, 
but  only  obtained  a  bad  and  burned  impression.  As  it  was 
useless  to  try  again,  he  left  about  one  o'clock.  I  then  spent 
an  hour  or  two  with  my  friends,  and,  later  in  the  afternoon, 
obtained  a  likeness  of  one  of  them.  The  prince  afterward 
came,  with  two  ladies  of  the  court,  to  have  their  likenesses 
taken ;  but  the  day  was  too  far  gone.  A  note  soon  after- 
ward came  from  the  palace,  to  say  that  two  of  the  special 
friends  of  the  princess  wished  to  have  their  likenesses,  and 
would  come  in  the  morning. 

A  number  of  my  friends  came  in  the  evening,  and  we 
conversed  long  and  earnestly  on  the  prospects  of  Madagas- 
car. I  was  able  to  give  them  correct  information  on  mat- 
ters with  which  it  was  of  the  utmost  importance  for  them  to 
be  acquainted,  and  to  offer  suggestions  and  advice  which  I 
could  not  but  hope  would  prove  beneficial  to  them  all.  It 
was  after  eleven  when  they  left  me,  with  many  expressions 
of  gratitude  for  the  information  and  the  advice  I  had  given 
them.  I  then  went  into  the  adjoining  house  to  prepare  my 
chemicals  for  the  next  day,  before  retiring  to  rest. 

By  daylight  the  following  morning  I  fixed  my  camera. 


456  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  xv. 

and,  with  the  earliest  morning  light,  took  a  full-length  por- 
trait of  a  valued  friend,  a  fine,  noble-looking  man  in  the 
prime  of  life.  He  wore  the  beautiful  rich  brown  lamba,  and 
I  obtained  a  good  negative.  His  portrait  is  the  foremost  in 
the  accompanying  group  of  full-length  figures.  Before  I 
had  finished,  the  queen's  secretary  and  the  friends  of  the 
princess  came.  I  obtained  full-length  portraits  of  them,  but 
not  very  good,  and  I  had  no  time  for  second  trials.  I  also 
took  a  full-length  portrait  of  the  husband  of  one  of  these 
ladies.  He  was  the  son  of  Radama's  sister,  and  a  fine  young 
man.  Of  the  wife  of  the  prince's  favorite  aid-de-camp  I  also 
obtained  a  good  portrait,  but  did  not  succeed  well  with  the 
other  ladies. 

As  the  day  advanced  I  was  obliged  to  leave  my  pho- 
tography and  pack  up  my  clothes  and -other  articles.  I 
then  paid  a  visit  to  Prince  Ramonja  and  others ;  and  after 
four  o'clock  tried  my  photography  again,  and  secured  a  few 
more  portraits.  Just  as  I  was  removing  the  apparatus,  a 
note  came  from  the  palace  with  a  request  from  the  princess 
that  if  possible  I  would  take  the  likeness  of  Prince  Ramon- 
ja's  daughter,  her  adopted  child,  in  the  morning;  to  which 
I  could  only  reply  that  I  would  try.  My  house  was  now 
crowded  with  friends.  Many  brought  presents  as  memo- 
rials of  affection  and  kind  feeling.  They  remained  until 
midnight  was  past,  when  I  was  glad  of  a  few  hours'  rest. 

The  young  princess,  Ramonja's  daughter,  came  early. 
The  light  was  good,  and  I  obtained  a  nice  half-length  por- 
trait. I  afterward  tried  a  full-length,  but  did  not  succeed 
so  well.  Numbers  were  waiting  anxiously  to  secure  their 
likenesses ;  and  I  took  several  of  the  officers  of  the  palace, 
and  some  of  my  particular  friends ;  but  when  the  sun  became 
too  high,  and  the  light  too  strong,  I  was  obliged  to  cease. 
I  insert  a  number  of  engravings  of  these  portraits,  with  a 
view  of  showing  the  remarkable  heads  and  features  of  the 
Hova  race. 


1   AND  2,    HOVA   OFFICERS.  3,   OFFICER  OF   THE  PALAOK. 

4,  HOVA  PKINCES8 — DACGHTEB  OF  PEINCB  RAMONJA. 


CHAP.  xv.  VISIT  FROM  THE  PRINCE  AND  PRINCESS.  459 

Soon  afterward  I  received  a  note  to  say  that,  as  the 
coming  night  would  be  the  last  I  should  spend  at  the  capi- 
tal, the  prince  and  princess  would  come  at  half  past  six 
o'clock  to  spend  the  evening  with  me.  In  the  afternoon  a 
note  came  from  Prince  Kamboasalama,  the  nephew  of  the 
queen,  and  the  cousin  of  the  prince,  stating  that  he  would 
be  very  glad  if  I  would  take  the  likeness  of  his  daughter ; 
but  I  was  obliged  to  reply  that,  much  to  my  regret,  my 
materials  were  all  packed,  and  it  was  then  too  late  for  me 
to  comply  with  his  wishes. 

Soon  after  six  o'clock  my  English  friend,  the  queen's 
secretary,  came,  and,  at  the  time  they  had  specified,  the 
prince  and  princess,  with  the  adopted  daughter  of  the  lat- 
ter came,  attended  by  two  or  three  female  domestics.  They 
wore  plain  dresses  of  rich  satin,  and  costly  necklaces.  That 
of  the  young  princess  was  of  small  pearls.  Over  their 
dresses  they  wore  beautiful  white  lambas,  bordered  with 
five  broad  stripes  of  scarlet  and  green  satin.  When  they 
took  their  seats  at  my  plainly-furnished  table,  I  apologized 
on  account  of  most  of  my  things  being  packed  up;  but 
they  both  assured  me  it  was  not  for  the  sake  of  what  I  could 
set  before  them,  but  from  the  friendship  of  their  hearts,  that 
they  desired  to  come  and  spend  the  last  evening  with  me. 
In  partaking  of  my  evening  refreshment,  the  ladies  appeared 
to  prefer  some  light  crisp  biscuits  with  their  tea,  and  de- 
clined the  ham,  the  diviners  having  prohibited  the  use  of 
the  flesh  of  hogs  within  the  capital ;  but  the  prince  and  his 
companions  manifested  no  scruples  on  that  head.  The 
prince  having  ordered  his  band  to  attend,  it  was  stationed 
in  the  yard  outside,  and  played  at  intervals  during  the 
evening. 

My  visitors  frequently  repeated  their  expressions  of  regret 
at  my  departure.  The  prince  said  God  would  preserve  me 
from  the  fever,  and  take  me  in  safety  to  my  home ;  and  the 
princess  added,  that  my  family  would  be  glad  I  had  not 


460  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xv. 

remained  longer  away.  They  asked  to  look  at  some  por- 
traits of  members  of  my  own  family  which  I  had  with  me, 
and  at  the  engraving  of  my  residence,  which  the  prince  told 
them  he  had  seen,  and  said  it  looked  like  a  pleasant  home ; 
the  princess  adding,  that  if  I  had  had  duplicates  of  some, 
she  would  have  liked  to  retain  a  copy,  but  did  not  desire 
it,  as  I  had  only  one.  She  asked  much  about  English  so- 
ciety, about  Queen  Victoria — whether  she  traveled  much 
from  one  part  of  the  kingdom  to  another,  or  had  many  vis- 
itors in  her  palace ;  and  what  made  the  people  of  England 
so  fond  of  her,  as  she  had  heard  they  were. 

I  said  the  people  of  England  looked  upon  their  own  gra- 
cious sovereign  as  the  most  illustrious  example  of  all  that 
was  excellent  and  good  in  the  relationships  of  life  as  well 
as  in  the  high  position  which  she  occupied  as  queen,  and  it 
was  thus  that  she  secured  their  loyalty  and  love.  But  the 
conversation  soon  turned  again  upon  the  present  and  the 
future  of  their  own  country.  They  said  that  whatever  re- 
ports might  reach  England  they  hoped  the  English  would 
never  believe  they  were  unfriendly,  for  they  should  never 
change — never  forget  that  the  King  of  England  and  the 
people  of  England  had  been  their  first  and  constant  friends. 
They  spoke  of  many  things  which  they  regretted  in  the  ex- 
isting state  of  their  country ;  and  expressed  their  earnest 
desires  that  the  burdens  of  the  people  should  be  lightened, 
their  condition  improved,  and  the  nation  united  and  pros- 
perous. I  said  it  would  be  of  great  importance  to  all  par- 
ties if  the  Sakalavas  and  others  could,  by  just  and  equita- 
ble means,  be  brought  to  view  the  Hovas  as  their  friends ; 
and  to  consider  union  and  identity  with  them,  and  partici- 
pation in  their  advantages,  as  best  for  all ;  and  thus  cement 
their  union  as  one  great  people  having  interests  in  com- 
mon, rather  than  become  separated  and  disunited,  if  not 
hostile  communities.  The  prince  said  it  was  his  earnest 
desire  to  do  all  he  could  to  mitigate  the  sufferings  of  the 


CHAP.  xv.      TRUST  IN  THE  PEOTECTION  OF  GOD.  461 

people,  and  to  render  them  contented  and  prosperous ;  and 
that,  if  his  life  was  spared,  he  should  still  do  so,  trusting 
in  God  to  direct  and  preserve  him.  He  said  some  of  his 
friends  remonstrated  with  him  for  going  about  with  so  few 
attendants;  "  But,"  he  added,  "I  put  my  trust  in  God.  If 
it  be  His  will  that  I  should  live,  He  will  protect  me."  I 
said,  "Yes;  God  will  preserve  us  in  doing  what  is  right; 
but  it  is  our  duty  to  use  the  means  He  places  within  our 
reach  to  prevent  wicked  men  from  doing  mischief."  He 
said,  "I  do  not  think  I  should,  in  reality,  be  more  safe  with 
a  larger  number  of  attendants.  My  chief  trust  is  in  God. 
He  is  the  Sovereign  of  life." 

The  sentiment  thus  expressed  was  often  repeated  by  the 
prince,  and  had  been  more  than  once  exemplified  in  his 
conduct.  I  heard  from  more  parties  than  one  that,  but  a 
short  time  before  my  arrival  at  the  capital,  an  attempt  had 
been  made  upon  his  life.  One  of  the  idol-keepers  was  said 
to  have  concealed  himself,  with  some  of  his  adherents,  in  a 
part  of  the  way  along  which  the  prince  was  expected  to 
pass  in  going  to  visit  the  commander-in-chief,  who  was  sick. 
The  assassin  had  raised  his  spear  as  the  prince  approached; 
and,  if  not  actually  making  the  thrust,  it  was  so  near  his 
person  that  the  prince  either  seized  or  dashed  aside  the 
weapon  with  his  own  hand.  The  attendants  of  the  prince 
secured  and  would  have  dispatched  the  man  at  once,  and 
the  chief  officer,  it  is  said,  gave  orders  for  him  to  be  put  to 
death  that  night;  but  the  prince  interposed,  and  said,  "God 
is  the  Sovereign  of  life.  He  has  preserved  my  life,  and  it 
is  not  riecessary  for  its  continued  preservation  that  I  should 
destroy  the  life  of  this  man.  Let  him  live,  but  be  sent  to  a 
distant  part  of  the  country,  and  there  so  secured  as  to  pre- 
vent farther  mischief  to  me  or  to  others."  In  consequence 
of  these  words  the  man  was  not  put  to  death. 

Our  conversation  subsequently  turned  upon  the  enlight- 
enment of  the  people,  and  I  spoke  of  the  high  estimation  in 


462  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xr. 

which  education  was  held  by  all  civilized  nations ;  that 
even  in  England,  notwithstanding  all  its  attainments,  there 
was  no  question  on  which  men's  minds  were  at  the  present 
time  more  anxiously  exercised  than  on  the  education  of  the 
people,  to  which  all  classes  gave  the  greatest  encourage- 
ment. The  queen's  secretary  fully  confirmed  my  state- 
ments ;  and  referred,  with  evident  satisfaction,  to  the  silver 
medal  which  he  had  before  exhibited,  and  which  his  broth- 
er had  received  at  one  of  the  public  examinations  at  the 
school  in  which  he  had  been  educated  in  England.  We 
afterward  adverted  to  the  possibility  that  the  time  might 
yet  come  when  there  should  be  not  only  schools  to  teach 
reading,  writing,  and  arithmetic,  but  a  college  at  Antanana- 
rivo, where  the  youth  of  the  higher  classes  and  the  most 
intelligent  in  the  nation  should  be  more  fully  taught,  and 
that  the  prince  might  perhaps  preside  at  an  annual  exam- 
ination, and  distribute  the  prizes;  while  the  princess  and 
the  ladies,  her  companions,  might  be  spectators.  The  prin- 
cess smiled  with  evident  pleasure  at  this  allusion. 

I  added  that,  from  many  things  1  had  witnessed,  the  in- 
telligent youth  of  the  nation  appeared  to  me  to  be  eager 
after  knowledge ;  and,  among  other  illustrations,  I  mention- 
ed that  on  my  first  arrival  I  had  suspended  a  thermometer 
in  my  sitting-room,  but  that  so  many  young  chiefs  had  no- 
ticed it  when  they  came,  and,  not  satisfied  with  being  told 
that  it  exhibited  the  temperature  of  the  atmosphere,  asked 
so  many  questions  about  the  properties  of  the  mercury,  the 
causes  of  the  variations  in  the  temperature  of  the  atmos- 
phere, and  the  manner  in  which  one  affected  the  other,  that 
I  began  to  fear  I  should  be  obliged  to  remove  it  for  want 
of  time  to  answer  all  the  questions  it  suggested  to  their 
minds.  This  desire  after  knowledge  in  reference  to  so  sim- 
ple a  thing  as  a  thermometer  I  said  I  felt  persuaded  existed 
in  reference  to  far  more  important  things. 

I  have  adverted  to  these  conversations  as  indicating  the 


CHAP.  xv.       THE  LAST  NIGHT  AT  THE  CAPITAL.  403 

views  and  feelings  of  those  with  whom  I  had  most  frequent 
intercourse.  I  felt  that  all  I  could  do  was  to  endeavor  to 
lodge  some  germs  of  useful  thought  in  their  open  and  in- 
quiring minds. 

At  length  the  prince,  observing  that  it  was  nearly  ten 
o'clock,  apologized  for  having  staid  so  late.  He  said  the 
•  cannon  would  soon  fire,  when  all  doors  would  be  closed ; 
and,  adding  that  they  ought  not  to  set  an  example  of  vio- 
lating the  regulations  of  the  capital,  he  gave  orders  for  pre- 
paring to  depart.  He  then  proposed  my  health,  directing 
the  band  at  the  same  tune  to  play  the  English  "God  save 
the  Queen."  The  prince  and  princess,  with  their  niece, 
then  took  their  leave,  and,  entering  their  palanquins,  de- 
parted amid  a  profusion  of  lanterns  and  a  crowd  of  attend- 
ants. 

After  they  had  left,  many  of  my  friends  came,  successive 
parties  arriving  until  nearly  midnight.  We  commended 
each  other  to  God  as  we  separated,  and  I  gave  them  all  my 
stock  of  medicine.  Two  of  their  number,  one  of  whom 
understands  English,  had  acquired  some  knowledge  of  the 
use  of  English  medicine  from  Dr.  Powell  of  Mauritius,  who, 
when  formerly  resident  in  Madagascar,  had  given  medical 
instruction  to  several  of  the  Malagasy  youth.  I  also  gave 
to  them  a  number  of  useful  articles,  and  left  others  to  be 
sold,  and  the  proceeds  to  be  distributed  among  the  afflicted 
and  the  destitute. 

By  daylight  on  Friday,  the  26th  of  September,  I  was 
stirring,  and  finished  my  packing.  Several  of  my  patients 
came,  some  bringing  presents,  memorials,  as  they  said,  of 
their  sense  of  my  kindness,  and  many  of  my  friends  came 
to  say  farewell.  Before  breakfast  the  prince,  with  two  of 
his  attendants,  came  to  say  that  he  and  several  of  his  friends 
intended  to  accompany  me  to  my  first  halting-place,  and 
wished  to  know  at  what  time  I  should  set  out.  I  replied 
that,  as  the  officers  did  not  propose  to  travel  far  the  first 


464  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xv. 

day,  I  should  leave  between  two  and  three  o'clock.  I  aft- 
erward went  to  take  leave  of  some  of  my  patients,  who 
were  doing  well.  I  also  went  to  look  again  at  places  of 
great  interest  to  me — the  rock  of  execution,  and  the  site  of 
the  burning  of  the  martyrs,  both  conspicuous  spots  and 
visible  from  great  part  of  the  capital. 

During  the  forenoon  the  queen  sent  an  officer  with  some 
Mozambique  men  to  carry  my  palanquin,  and  I  hired  oth- 
ers. The  officer  also  informed  me  that  eight  officers  were 
appointed  to  proceed  with  me  to  the  coast,  that  there  might 
be  no  delay  in  the  fever  districts;  and  a  hundred  men, 
more  than  double  the  number  required,  came  to  arrange 
and  apportion  my  packages.  Officers  came  and  furnished 
the  requisite  cordage  and  poles,  and  all  were  ready  by  noon. 
I  requested  the  officers  to  thank  the  queen  for  the  kindness 
and  attention  she  had  shown  me  even  to  the  last.  About 
one  o'clock  the  prince  arrived,  and,  accompanied  by  one  of 
the  nobles  and  their  attendants,  entered  the  house.  Many 
people  were  collected  in  the  court-yard.  The  prince  was 
more  than  usually  grave ;  and  we  were  long  engaged  in 
earnest  conversation.  He  spoke  much  of  his  anxiety  for 
the  people  and  his  distress  at  events  that  occurred.  He 
said  it  was  like  tearing  his  heart  out. 

About  three  o'clock  we  rose  to  depart,  when  the  prince, 
with  a  degree  of  feeling  that  almost  overcame  me,  came 
and,  taking  my  hand,  led  me  out  of  the  house  through  the 
crowd  of  officers  and  people  to  my  palanquin.  As  soon  as 
I  was  seated  he  entered  his  own,  as  did  also  the  young  no- 
ble his  companion.  Thus  accompanied  I  commenced  my 
homeward  journey. 

As  we  passed  through  the  narrow  streets  there  were  not 
many  people,  but  I  recognized  among  them  the  faces  of 
friends.  On  reaching  the  more  open  road  we  were  joined 
by  two  other  nobles  and  the  wife  of  one  of  the  prince's 
friends.  The  prince's  band  also  was.  there  in  waiting ;  it 


CHAP.  xv.  A  TRULY  PITIABLE  OBJECT.  465 

commenced  playing  as  we  approached,  and  preceded  us 
during  the  rest  of  the  way.  The  prince  ordered  his  bear- 
ers to  keep  his  palanquin  close  to  the  side  of  mine,  that  we 
might  talk  together  as  we  passed  along. 

We  had  not  proceeded  far  before  we  •  approached  the 
walls  of  a  prison.  On  a  low  bank,  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  road,  a  poor  wretched-looking  man  was  sitting,  playing 
on  a  small  lokanga,  or  native  sort  of  guitar,  and  begging  a 
handful  of  rice  or  other  alms  from  the  passers-by.  He  ap- 
peared of  middle  age,  and  had  a  heavy  iron  ring  riveted 
round  his  neck  and  another  heavy  iron  ring  round  one  of 
his  legs.  The  other  leg  was  lacerated  and  torn,  as  if  the 
flesh  had  been  cut  or  worn  away  by  a  similar  ring.  Some 
of  the  by-standers  seemed  moved  with  pity  toward  the  poor 
sufferer.  As  we  approached  the  prince  said,  "Don't  look 
that  way.  I  am  ashamed.  It  is  barbarous !"  I  asked 
what  was  the  man's  crime.  He  said  he  did  not  know  ex- 
actly, but  he  believed  it  was  slight,  and  that  it  grieved  him 
to  see  such  cruel  punishments.  I  remarked  that  all  such 
tortures  characterized  a  barbarous  people,  and  were  only 
inflicted  by  governments  ignorant  of  the  best  means  of  de- 
terring from  crime  and  of  elevating  the  people,  for  all  such 
inflictions  and  exhibitions  of  torture  only  tended  to  harden 
and  brutalize  the  minds  of  the  people. 

It  was  a  bright,  beautiful  afternoon ;  indeed,  there  was 
not  a  shower  all  the  time  that  I  was  at  the  capital,  and  we 
continued  our  way,  conversing  as  we  passed  along,  until 
we  reached  Amboipo,  five  miles  from  the  :  capital,  where 
it  had  been  at  first  proposed  that  I  should  halt  for  the 
night ;  we  all  alighted  on  the  plain  in  front  of  the  village. 
The  lady  who  had  accompanied  us  presented  me  with  a 
silk  lamba  to  take  home  as  a  memorial  of  my  visit.  The 
officers  who  had  the  ordering  of  the  journey  then  said  it 
would  be  better  to  go  on  to  Betafo,  perhaps  five  miles  far- 
ther, and  then  halt  for  the  night.  The  prince  then  ordered 

GG 


466  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xv. 

the  band  to  play  the  English  "  God  save  the  Queen,"  dur- 
ing which  all  took  off  their  hats.  He  now  took  leave  of 
me  with  dignity  and  feeling,  as  did  also  the  nobles  and 
their  companions,  commending  me  to  the  protection  of 
God.  Then,  having  accompanied  me  to  my  palanquin  and 
told  the  chief  of  his  band  to  go  with  me  to  the  place  where 
I  should  halt  for  the  night,  the  prince  and  his  companions 
entered  their,  palanquins.  The  aids-de-camp,  five  or  six  in 
number,  mounted  their  horses  and  returned  to  the  capital, 
while  I  pursued  my  way  to  Betafo,  where  I  found  all  my 
packages  had  already  arrived.  Here  the  band  took  their 
leave.  I  made  the  leader  a  small  present,  and  they  return- 
ed; while  I  prepared  for  the  first  night's  lodging  on  my 
homeward  road. 

Thus  ended  my  visit  to  the  capital  of  Madagascar  and 
my  intercourse  with  this  people.  I  have  described  the  inci- 
dents of  my  visit  somewhat  minutely,  as  the  best  means  of 
conveying  a  distinct  impression  of  the  circumstances  of  the 
people,  especially  the  Hovas,  and  their  state  of  civilization. 
Great  is  the  interest  felt  in  Madagascar  by  all  classes,  though 
we  have  had  little  or  no  direct  intercourse  with  the  people 
for  the  -last  twenty  years.  The  events  which,  during  that 
period,  have  transpired  there  have  given  to  our  interest  in 
that  country  and  people  an  intense  and  undying  character, 
as  connected  with  the  holy  fortitude  and  calm  endurance 
of  those  who  have,  during  that  period,  suffered  there  afflic- 
tion, spoliation,  slavery,  imprisonment,  chains,  and  death  for 
the  name  of  Christ. 

'  In  reference  to  the  religion  of  the  present,  reasons  which 
are  obvious  require  silence.  No  one  would  wish  to  impli- 
cate the  living  in  the  calamities  that  were  endured  by  the 
dead.  The  laws  against  the  Christian  religion  are  not  re- 
pealed ;  and  may,  for  purposes  to  us  inscrutable,  be  allowed 
by  the  all- wise  and  all-merciful  God  to  be  again  enforced. 

It  may  be  sufficient,  therefore,  to  say  that,  so  far  as  my 


CHAP.  xv.      THE  CHRISTIANITY  OF  THE  PRESENT.  467 

opportunities  of  observing  it  have  extended,  the  religion 
of  the  present  is  the  same  as  that  of  the  past,  and  appears 
to  be  sincere  and  satisfactory,  a  religion  derived  simply 
and  solely  from  the  teachings  of  God's  holy  word,  unfold- 
ed, applied,  and  sustained  by  the  operations  of  the  Holy 
Spirit.  Under  this  Divine  influence  it  appears  to  have  at- 
tained a  measure  of  development  that  is  truly  marvelous. 
That  it  is  to  be  ascribed  to  this  source  alone  would  appear 
from  the  fact  that  a  large  number  of  those  who  have  suf- 
fered became  Christians  after  the  last  missionaries  had  left 
the  country.  I  repeatedly  passed  the  places  where  the 
martyrs  suffered — spots  that  will  be  consecrated  by  the 
most  hallowed  and  affectionate  associations  in  the  minds 
of  the  Malagasy  throughout  all  future  ages.  I  had  met 
and  conversed  repeatedly  with  their  widowed  survivors  and 
their  orphan  children,  as  well  as  with  those  who  witnessed 
the  steadfastness  of  their  faith  and  the  quiet  triumph  of 
their  death ;  and  from  their  testimony  had  derived  more 
than  confirmation  of  all  that  we  had  previously  heard. 

The  authorities  in  Madagascar,  who  sought  by  torture 
and  death  to  extinguish  the  Christian  faith,  by  whatever 
motives  they  may  have  been  actuated,  only  imitated  the 
Diocletians  of  the  early  ages,  and  the  Alvas,  the  Medicis, 
and  the  Marys  of  more  recent  times,  and  with  correspond- 
ing results  in  the  invincible  constancy  of  those  who  fell, 
and  the  subsequent  fruits  of  the  imperishable  seed  which 
was  scattered  in  the  martyrs'  blood.  Deeply  affecting  were 
the  details  which  I  received  of  the  sorrows  and  the  conso- 
lations of  the  sufferers ;  of  their  conduct  in  the  hour  of 
peril,  as  well  as  on  the  day  of  impeachment  and  of  trial ; 
with  the  noble  testimony  which  they  bore,  when  brought 
before  judges  and  rulers,  for  His  name's  sake.  The  follow- 
ing exact  and  verbatim  statements  refer  to  the  severe  per- 
secution in  the  year  1849,  and  will  make  their  own  appeal 
to  every  heart.  They  a?e  offered  without  apprehension,  a? 


468  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xv. 

those  to  whom  they  refer  have  passed  into  a  world  where 
"  the  fury  of  the  oppressor  "  and  the  cruelty  of  the  perse- 
cutor can  never  enter. 

"  On  the  14th  of  March,  1849,  the  officer  before  whom 
the  Christians  were  examined  said,  'Do  you  pray  to  the 
sun,  or  the  moon,  or  the  earth  ?' 

"  E answered,  '  I  do  not  pray  to  these,  for  the  hand 

of  God  made  them.' 

"  '  Do  you  pray  to  the  twelve  mountains  that  are  sacred  ?' 
"K .    I  do  not  pray  to  them,  for  they  are  mount- 
ains.' 

"  '  Do  you  pray  to  the  idols  that  render  sacred  the  kings  ?' 

"  E .  '  I  do  not  pray  to  them,  for  the  hand  of  man 

made  them.' 

"  '  Do  you  pray  to  the  ancestors  of  the  sovereigns  ?' 

"  E .  '  Kings  and  rulers  are  given  by  God  that  we 

should  serve  and  obey  them,  and  render  them  homage. 
Nevertheless,  they  are  only  men  like  ourselves :  when  we 
pray,  we  pray  to  God  alone.' 

" '  You  make  distinct,  and  observe  the  Sabbath  day.' 

"E .  'That  is  the  day  of  the  great  God;  for  in  six 

days  the  Lord  made  all  His  works.  But  God  rested  on 
the  seventh,  and  He  caused  it  to  be  holy ;  and  I  rest,  or 
keep  sacred  that  day.' 

"And  in  similar  manner  answered  all  the  Christians. 
And  when  a  man  who  had  kept  aloof  saw  that  one — a 
woman — did  not  deny  God,  and  remembered  that  to  deny 
God  was  followed  with  compunction,  he  went  and  spoke  as 
the  others  had  done.  And  when  these  brethren  and  sisters 
were  bound,  the  husband  of  one  of  them,  who  had  heard 
their  confession,  came  and  said  to  them,  '  Be  not  afraid,  for 
it  is  well  if  for  that  you  die.'  He  was  a  soldier  from  a  dis- 
tance, and  not  of  the  number  of  the  accused.  Then  he 
was  examined,  and,  as  he  made  the  same  avowal,,  they 
bound  him  also.  And  they  removed  these  ten  brethren 


CHAP.  xv.    TRIAL  AND  SENTENCES  OF  THE  CHRISTIANS.     469 

and  sisters,  and  made  their  bands  hard,  or  tight,  and  con- 
fined them  each  in  a  separate  house." 

The  writers  of  the  journal  add,  "And,  at  one  o'clock  at 
night,  we  met  together  and  prayed.  On  the  22d  of  March, 
when  one  had  said  Jehovah  is  God  alone,  and  above  every 
name  that  is  named,  and  Jesus  Christ  is  also  God,  the  peo- 
ple cried  out,  mocking.  And  to  another  the  officer  said, 
'  Eabodampoimerina  (the  sacred  name  of  our  queen)  is  our 
god,  but  not  your  god.'  He  answered,  'The  God  who 
made  me  is  my  God ;  but  Eabodo  is  my  queen  or  sovereign.' 
And  when  he  refused  other  answer,  they  said,  '  Perhaps  he 
is  an  idiot,  or  a  lunatic.'  He  answered,  '  I  am  not  an  idiot, 
and  have  not  lost  my  understanding.'  Then  there  was  a 
commotion  and  buzz  among  the  people,  saying,  '  Take  him 
away.'  And  they  took  him  to  prison. 

"  And  before  it  was  light,  on  the  following  day,  the  peo- 
ple assembled  at  A y.  Then  they  took  the  eighteen 

brethren  that  chose  God,  and  to  inherit  life,  and  to  become 
His  sons  and  His  daughters,  and  they  bound  their  hands 
and  feet,  and  tied  each  of  them  to  a  pole  wrapped  in  mats, 
and  placed  them  with  the  other  prisoners.  And  of  these 
united  brethren  and  sisters,  ten  were  from  Vonizongo.  And 
when  the  officers,  and  troops,  and  judges  arrived,  they 
read  over  the  names  of  each  class  of  prisoners,  and  then 
placed  them  by  themselves,  and  stationed  around  them  sol- 
diers with  muskets  and  spears ;  and  the  sentences  were  then 
delivered — consigning  some  to  fine  and  confiscation,  others 
to  slavery,  others  to  prison  and  chains,  some  to  flogging, 
and  eighteen  to  death — four  to  be  burned,  and  fourteen  to 
be  hurled  from  the  rocky  precipice  and  afterward  burned  to 
ashes. 

"  And  the  eighteen  appointed  to  die,  as  they  sat  on  the 
ground  surrounded  by  the  soldiers,  sang  the  137th  hymn  :* 

*  The  numbers  refer  to  the  collection  of  printed  hymns  in  the  native  lan- 
guage. The  translation  is  verbal  and  literal,  not  a  metrical  rendering  of  the 
meaning. 


470  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xv. 

"  'When  I  shall  die,  and  leave  my  friends, 

When  they  shall  weep  for  toe, 
When  departed  has  my  life, 
Then  I  shall  be  happy. ' 

"  When  that  hymn  was  finished,  they  sang  the  154th : 
"  'When  I  shall  behold  Him  rejoicing  in  the  heavens,'  etc. 

"  And  when  the  sentences  were  all  pronounced,  and  the 
officer  was  about  to  return  to  the  chief  authorities,  the  four 
sentenced  to  be  burned  requested  him  to  ask  that  they  might 
be  killed  first,  and  then  burned.  But  they  were  burned 
alive. 

"  When  the  officer  was  gone,  they  took  those  eighteen 
away  to  put  them  to  death.  The  fourteen  they  tied  by  the 
hands  and  the  feet  to  long  poles,  and  carried  on  men's  shoul- 
ders. And  these  brethren  prayed,  and  spoke  to  the  people, 
as  they  were  being  caried  along.  And  some  who  beheld 
them,  said  that  their  faces  were  like  the  faces  of  angels. 
And  when  they  came  to  the  top  of  Nampaminarina  they 
cast  them  down,  and  their  bodies  were  afterward  dragged 
to  the  other  end  of  the  capital,  to  be  burned  with  the  bodies 
of  those  who  were  burned  alive. 

"And  as  they  took  the  four  that  were  to  be  burned  alive 
to  the  place  of  execution,  these  Christians  sang  the  90th 
hymn,  beginning,  'When  our  hearts  are  troubled,'  each 
verse  ending  with,  '  Then  remember  us.'  Thus  they  sang 
on  the  road.  And  when  they  came  to  Faravohitra,  there 
they  burned  them,  fixed  between  split  spars.  And  there 
was  a  rainbow  in  the  heavens  at  the  time,  close  to  the  place 
of  burning.  Then  they  sang  the  hymn  158 : 

"  'There  is  a  blessed  land, 
Making  most  happy, 
Never  shall  the  rest  depart, 
Nor  cause  of  trouble  come.' 

"  That  was  the  hymn  they  sang  after  they  were  in  the 


CIIAP.  xv.  THE  DEATH  OF  THE  MARTYRS.  471 

fire.  Then  they  prayed,  saying,  '  O  Lord  receive  our  spir- 
its ;  for  thy  love  to  us  has  caused  this  to  come  to  us.  And 
lay  not  this  sin  to  their  charge.' 

"  Thus  they  prayed  as  long  as  they  had  any  life.  Then 
they  died ;  but  softy — gently.  Indeed,  gently  was  the  go- 
ing forth  of  their  life.  And  astonished  were  all  the  people 
around  that  beheld  the  burning  of  them  there." 

For  the  same  reason,  viz.,  to  enable  my  readers  to  form 
their  own  estimate  of  his  character,  I  have  recited  also,  in 
detail,  fragments  of  conversation  with  the  young  Prince  of 
Madagascar,  who  is,  if  not  at  the  present  time,  yet  certainly 
in  relation  to  the  future,  the  most  important  individual 
among  his  own  people.  I  have  already  described  his  per- 
son, and,  in  reference  to  his  character  and  habits,  the  late 
M.  de  Lastelle,  speaking  to  me  of  him  in  1853,  observed, 
"  He  is  not  like  a  Malagasy  at  all,  but  much  more  like  an 
English  gentleman." 

Without  pretending  to  determine  how  far  this  comparison 
was  just,  I  soon  became  convinced,  from  much  that  I  saw 
and  more  that  I  heard,  that  the  prince  was  a  remarkable 
young  man,  in  whose  future  career  it  was  impossible  not  to 
feel  deeply  interested.  His  youthful  appearance,  unembar- 
rassed address,  and  gentle  and  easy  manners  impressed  me 
favorably  during  our  earliest  intercourse.  His  preposses- 
sions in  favor  of  the  English  I  did  not  expect,  as  he  could 
have  been  but  a  child  when,  twenty  years  before,  the  last 
English  resident  had  left  the  capital ;  and  perhaps  I  ascribed 
some  portion  of  the  encomiums  he  passed  upon  England  to 
his  own  politeness,  and  the  circumstance  of  my  being  an  En- 
glishman, probably  the  first  Englishman  with  whom  he  had 
become  personally  acquainted.  I  asked  what  had  caused 
him  to  form  so  favorable  an  opinion  of  the  English,  and 
he  said  it  was  because,  according  to  what  he  had  heard,  they 
Were  such  as,  in  his  own  heart,  he  should  like  to  be — true, 
just,  humane,  and  watchful  over  human  life.  When  I  thus 


472  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xv. 

found  that  it  was  not  the  greatness  of  the  nation,  but  the 
reported  goodness  of  the  people  which  had  prepossessed 
him  in  their  favor,  it  greatly  enhanced  my  estimation  of  his 
own  character.  And  though  to  me  he  thus  expressed  his 
opinion  of  the  English,  he  said  he  desired  to  be  friendly 
with  all  foreigners  who  came  to  his  country  for  honest  and 
honorable  purposes. 

I  regretted  exceedingly  the  prince's  want  of  a  good  edu- 
cation, as  I  could  not  help  surmising  that,  if  the  page  of  his- 
tory had  presented  its  noble  and  distinguished  characters  to 
his  contemplation,  the  morally  great  would  have  been  his 
heroes.  His  love  of  justice  and  fair,  open  dealing  appeared 
constant  and  strong.  He  seemed  to  have  an  intuitive  repug- 
nance to  deception,  treachery,  and  cruelty,  and  to  regard 
human  life  as  a  sacred  thing.  Thus  he  frequently  spoke  of 
his  admiration -of  the  English  on  account  of  the  humanity 
of  their  laws,  and  their  respect  for  human  life  in  all  circum- 
stances, even  in  war;  offering  remarks  suggestive  of  the  idea 
that  in  war  submission  was  the  end,  never  the  beginning  of 
slaughter — one  of  the  most  striking  contrasts  between  the 
revolting  wars  of  his  own  country  and  those  of  civilized  na- 
tions. These  were  with  the  prince  not  mere  theories.  He 
had  often  interposed  not  only,  by  his  advice  or  authority,  to 
settle  disputes,  to  insure  justice,  and  to  reconcile  differences, 
but  to  save  life,  and  prevent  suffering;  and  I  heard  from 
more  than  one  source  that,  when  there  was  a  conspiracy 
among  his  own  adherents  to  destroy  his  most  formidable 
and  determined  enemies,  he  peremptorily  forbade  any  thing 
of  the  kind  on  his  behalf;  and  at  length,  not  being  certain 
that  this  prohibition  would  restrain  his  followers,  he  actu- 
ally went  himself  and  personally  informed  his  rivals  of  the 
threatened  danger,  and  thus  saved  their  lives. 

But  while  thus  humane  and  just  the  prince  is  neither 
weak  nor  cowardly.  His  affection  for  his  mother  appeared 
to  be  strong  and  faithful,  and  his  loyalty  equally  so.  And, 


CHAP.  xv.      CHARACTER  OF  THE  YOUNG  PRINCE.  473 

though  not  insensible  to  the  miseries  of  the  people,  but,  on 
the  contrary,  feeling  deeply  the  calamities  produced  by  the 
measures  of  the  government  administered  in  her  name,  he 
more  than  once  said  that,  in  the  event  of  any  danger,  he 
would  be  the  first  to  die  in  defense  of  his  mother.  And 
yet  it  is  said  he  allows  no  suitable  occasion  to  pass  without 
counseling  a  mild  and  equitable  rule.  His  keen  sense  of 
the  injustice  of  the  severities  and  cruelties  inflicted  upon 
the  Christians  contributed,  in  all  probability,  to  induce  the 
prince  to  become  their  friend ;  and  when  ultimately,  repu- 
diating the  claims  of  the  idols  of  his  country,  he  identified 
himself  with  the  Christians,  though  thereby  imperiling  his 
prospects  of  the  crown,  and  subsequently,  when  he  is  said, 
to  have  remonstrated  against  all  open  persecution,  whatever 
the  consequences  to  himself  might  be,  he  evinced  a  degree 
of  moral  courage  not  always  associated  with  the  gentle  de- 
meanor and  humane  disposition  which  he  has  so  uniformly 
manifested. 

It  is  the  attribute  of  God  alone  to  see  the  end  from  the 
beginning ;  but,  whatever  may  be  the  future  of  Rakotond 
Radama,  he  has  been  one  of  the  greatest  blessings  to  his 
own  country  in  the  important  crisis  through  which  it  is 
now  passing,  occupying  a  position  somewhat  analogous  to 
that  of  our  own  Edward  VI.  at  the  dawn  of  the  Reforma- 
tion, but  with  even  sounder  principles  and  greater  charity ; 
for,  while  the  former  but  reluctantly  spared  his  popish  sis- 
ter Mary,  the  latter  preserved  the  life  of  a  heathen  priest 
who  had  devised  and  attempted  the  destruction  of  his  own. 

The  temperament  of  the  prince  is  ardent  and  impulsive. 
Hence  his  conduct  may  at  times  be  hasty ;  and  this  tenden- 
cy has  not  been  restrained  by  the  discipline  of  sound  edu- 
cation. His  disposition  prompts  him  to  rely  much  on  oth- 
ers ;  hence  his  greatest  danger  is  from  false  or  pretended 
friends,  and  his  greatest  want  is  wise  and  faithful  counsel- 
ors. Still  there  is  much  to  excite  admiration,  if  not  sur- 


474  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xv. 

prise,  in  the  amount  of  his  intelligence,  and  the  soundness 
of  his  judgment.  But,  when  his  parentage,  and  the  tone  of 
feeling  among  those  around  him  on  the  subject  of  torture 
and  bloodshed  are  considered,  together  with  the  spectacles 
of  misery  and  the  examples  of  cruelty  to  which  his  child- 
hood and  youth  must  have  been  exposed,  his  kindly  sym- 
pathies, his  horror  at  the  shedding  of  innocent  blood,  and 
his  sacred  regard  for  human  life  appear  truly  marvelous. 
Considering  his  character  and  his  influence  for  good,  to- 
gether with  the  perils  of  his  position — for  his  friends  are 
painfully  apprehensive  for  his  life — as  well  as  the  hallowed 
hopes  that  seem  to  hang  upon  that  valuable  life,  every 
friend  of  religion  and  humanity  must  feel  impelled  to  pray 
that  the  prince  royal  of  Madagascar  may  be  preserved,  and 
his  career  be  prosperous. 


CHAP.  xvi.  FAEEWELL  TO  FKIENDS.  475 


CHAPTEE  XVI. 

Breakfast  at  Amboilefo. — Intercourse  with  Friends  from  the  Capital. — 
Hospitality  at  Prince  Eamonja's  Village. — New  Plants  collected. — Lodg- 
ing in  the  Forest  of  Alamazaotra. — Noise  of  the  Monkeys  'or  Lemurs. — 
Lycopodiums  and  other  Plants. — Heavy  Kains. — Extreme  Difficulty  of 
Traveling  in  the  Forest. — Meeting  with  French  Priests  and  Merchants. — 
Acceptable  Collection  of  Plants. — New  Species  of  Platycerum  or  Stag's- 
horn  Fern. — Arrival  at  Tamatave. — Visit  to  the  Locality  of  the  Ouvi- 
randra  Fenestralis. — Crocodiles. — Kindness  experienced  at  Tamatave. — 
Arrival  of  the  Castro. — Presents  from  the  Queen. — Departure  from 
Madagascar. — Hospitality  at  Mauritius. — Storm  on  the  Ocean. — Rescue 
of  two  shipwrecked  Mariners. — Remarkable  Meeting  with  a  Native  of 
the  Sandwich  Islands. — Safe  Arrival  in  England. 

BUT  to  return  to  the  narrative  of  my  journey.  Several 
friends  who  had  been  my  constant  companions  or  daily 
visitors  at  Antananarivo,  and  who  were  anxious  to  defer 
our  final  separation  as  long  as  possible,  had  traveled  by 
my  side  during  the  first  day's  journey,  and  passed  the 
night  with  me  under  the  same  roof.  While  the  officers 
were  adjusting  and  sending  off  the  packages  the  next  morn- 
ing, we  had  much  serious  and  affectionate  conversation; 
and,  after  I  had  given  some  of  them  a  small  memento  of 
my  visit,  we  bade  each  other  farewell.  They  retraced 
their  steps  to  the  capital,  and  I  resumed  my  journey  to  the 
coast. 

Among  the  presents  I  had  received  at  the  capital  were  a 
number  of  live  animals  from  the  Sakalave  country  and 
other  parts.  Some  of  these  had  been  pets  with  their  for- 
mer owners :  among  them  a  little  tenrec  had  been  given 
me  by  the  princess.  It  had  generally  slept  all  day  in  a 
box,  but  frequently  got  out  during  the  night,  seeming 


476 


VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR. 


CHAP.    XVI. 


TUB   8PINY    TKNKEC. 


greatly  to  enjoy  its  nocturnal  rambles.  It  fed  on  insects 
and  rice,  and  was  quite  tame.  Of  these  animals  there  were 
specimens  which  I  intended  to  preserve,  in  order  that  they 
might  find  a  final  resting-place  in  the  splendid  museum 
under  the  care  of  Professor  Owen  in  London,  at  whose 
earnest  entreaty  I  had  used  my  best  endeavors,  though 
without  success,  to  obtain  relics  of  the  dodo  in  Mauritius, 
and  the  rare  and  wonderful  Cheiromya  Madagascar ensis,  I 
had  given  the  presents  in  question  to  the  special  charge  of 
one  of  my  attendants ;  but  they  had  been  forgotten  when 
the  other  things  were  removed,  and,  on  my  sending  back 
afterward  to  inquire  about  them,  they  could  not  be  found. 
About  ten  o'clock  on  the  day  when  my  friends  left  me 
we  reached  Amboilefo,  where  we  halted  at  the  residence 
of  the  mother  of  the  wife  of  a  French  trader  at  Tamatave, 
for  which  place  the  mother  had  that  morning  set  out.  But 
the  two  daughters,  one  of  whom  had  recently  become  a 
widow,  received  me  very  kindly,  and  soon  provided  a  hos- 
pitable breakfast.  The  young  widow  wore  her  hair  un- 
plaited  and  disheveled;  and  this,  with  her  wan  face,  the 
result  of  long  illness,  and  the  low  plaintive  voice  in  which 
she  spoke,  together  with  the  aspect  of  a  weak,  sickly  child 
which  lay  in  her  arms,  strongly  excited  my  compassion. 
They  were  evidently  a  family  of  some  consideration,  for 


CHAP.  xvi.        NIGHT  SPENT  AT  AMBATOMANGA.  477 

the  spacious  inclosed  court  in  front  of  the  house  was  half 
filled  with  carefully-constructed  tombs  of  stone,  some  of 
them  of  large  dimensions ;  and  I  was  told  these  were  the 
tombs  of  the  family. 

Soon  after  noon  we  resumed  our  journey,  reached  Am- 
batomanga,  and,  passing  over  the  deep  fosses,  and  along 
the  edge  of  a  sunken  cattle-fold,  which  is  always  within 
the  defenses,  and  the  fahitra,  or  pens  for  fattening  cattle,  I 
alighted  at  the  door  of  the  house  I  had  formerly  occupied, 
and  received  a  cordial  welcome  from  its  inmates. 

In  the  evening,  friends  from  the  capital  arrived,  some 
bringing  with  them  letters  and  other  documents,  others 
coming  only  that  we  might  spend  another  evening  togeth- 
er. With  these  friends  I  had  deeply-interesting  and  im- 
portant conversation,  and  I  endeavored  to  give  some  useful 
information  on  matters  which  they  had  previously  men- 
tioned, and  on  which  they  were  anxious  to  have  my  most 
matured  opinions.  The  next  morning  I  parted  with  them, 
under  deep  solicitude,  but  with  much  affection ;  and,  send- 
ing messages  to  those  I  had  left  behind,  I  left  the  romantic 
feudal-looking  village  of  Ambatomanga,  and  continued  my 
journey. 

In  the  evening  of  the  following  day  we  reached  the  first 
village  in  Ankay.  Descending  by  the  mountain  road  on 
the  western  side  of  the  extensive  and  fertile  valley  east  of 
Angavo,  we  reached  the  village  of  Prince  Eamonja  in  the 
forenoon  of  the  next  day.  I  was  received  with  the  same 
tokens  of  hospitality  and  kindness  as  had  been  shown  when 
I  had  halted  there  on  my  way  to  Imerina.  The  servants 
of  the  prince  brought  presents,  etc.  A  bullock  was  killed 
by  his  orders,  and  distributed  among  the  people  who  were 
with  me.  His  aged  and  venerable  nurse  was  as  lavish  in 
her  expressions  of  joy  that  I  had  seen  the  prince,  as  she 
had  been  in  her  anticipation  of  the  pleasure  he  would  ex- 
perience on  my  arrival.  After  remaining  with  these  friend- 


478  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xvi. 

ly  retainers  of  the  prince  until  noon,  we  traveled  onward 
to  Ambodinifo,  and  on  the  following  day  to  Moramanga,  a 
military  station,  where  I  found  all  my  packages  had  previ- 
ously arrived. 

Although  a  hundred  and  fifty  miles  or  more  from  Tama- 
tave,  I  had  already  begun  to  collect  a  few  plants,  which  I 
engaged  a  special  bearer  to  carry,  for  I  could  not  leave  a 
new,  or  curious,  or  beautiful  plant  or  flower  behind,  when 
I  had  an  opportunity  of  taking  it  with  me,  with  even  a 
chance  of  getting  it  alive  to  the  coast.  On  my  way  toward 
the  wood-cutter's  station  at  Alamazaotra  I  obtained  two 
new  kinds  of  angraecums,  several  plants  of  the  curiously- 
shaped  capsule  and  yellow-flowered  Angrcecum  crassum,  and 
the  Angrcecum  dtratum  •  also  a  little  purple-flowered  tuber- 
ous plant,  much  like  Amphorchis  calcarata.  The  latter  I 
found  as  I  was  passing  along  the  edges  of  the  water-courses 
on  the  mountain  sides.  But  my  greatest  treasure  was  a 
large  bulbed  plant,  of  quite  a  new  species ;  and  as  it  is  now 
growing  well,  and  showing  flowers,  I  hope  it  may  be  added 
to  the  already  rich  collections  of  orchids  cultivated  in  our 
country.  It  had  a  large  flower-stalk,  a  seed-pod  the  size 
of  an  orange,  and  the  natives  said  the  flower  was  scarlet 
and  purple.  I  also  obtained  a  new  epiphite,  with  bulbs 
and  leaves  resembling  Oncidium  ampliatum  major,  but  of  a 
different  habit  of  growth. 

The  weather  was  fine,  and  the  descent  from  the  high 
central  provinces  so  much  easier  than  the  ascent  had  been, 
that  in  the  afternoon  of  the  1st  of  October  we  halted  at 
Alamazaotra.  I  set  off  immediately  into  the  forest,  search- 
ing for  plants,  and  returned  at  dusk  with  a  few  small  bulb- 
ous orchids,  and  two  small  species  of  lycopodiums.  Izaro 
and  one  of  the  bearers  were  suffering  from  fever.  Our 
wants  for  the  night — fuel  and  provisions — were  liberally 
supplied  by  the  officers  at  the  station.  By  seven  the  fol- 
lowing morning  we  resumed  .our  journey,  and  soon  entered 


CHAP.  xvi.  NOTICES  OF  THE  LEMUR.  479 

the  forest.  The  morning  was  bright,  the  atmosphere  clear 
and  bracing.  My  attention  was  soon  attracted  by  a  pecul- 
iar shouting  or  hallooing  in  the  forest,  apparently  at  no 
great  distance  from  the  road.  It  was  not  like  any  sound  I 
had  heard  before,  but  resembled  that  of  men  or  boys  call- 
ing to  each  other,  more  than  any  thing  else.  At  first  I 
thought  it  was  a  number  of  people  driving  cattle  out  of  the 
forest  into  the  road.  Still  I  heard  no  crashing  among  the 
underwood,  and  saw  no  signs  of  bullocks.  Then  I  imagined 
it  must  be  a  number  of  bird-catchers  or  squirrel-catchers. 
But  on  inquiring  of  my  companions,  they  said  the  noise 
proceeded  from  the  black  and  white  lemurs,  Lemur  macaco, 
of  which  there  were  great  numbers  in  the  forests. 

I  had  repeatedly  seen  lemurs  of  more  than  one  species  in 
the  market  at  Tamatave,  and  numbers  among  the  people  of 
the  place.  There  were  two  or  three  of  the  large-ruffed  le- 
mur in  a  house  near  my  own  dwelling,  and  they  seemed  to 
be  quite  domesticated.  Though  covered  with  thick,  almost 
woolly  hair,  they  appeasred  to  be  ill  at  ease  in  wet  or  cold 
weather,  but  to  luxuriate  in  the  warm  sunshine.  I  often 
noticed  two  or  three  of  them  together,  on  a  fine  morning 
after  rain,  raised  up  on  their  hind  legs  on  the  outside  of 
the  house,  leaning  back  against  the  wall  of  the  house  with 
their  fore  legs  spread  out,  evidently  enjoying  the  warmth 
of  the  sun  which  was  shining  upon  them.  They  are  often 
kept  tame  by  the  natives  for  a  long  time,  and  numbers  are 
sold  to  the  masters  of  vessels  and  others  visiting  the  port. 
We  had  one  on  board  the  ship  in  which  I  made  my  first 
voyage  from  Madagascar.  It  was  a  fine  animal,  and  dur- 
ing the  twenty-eight  days  of  our  passage  I  had  frequent  op- 
portunities of  observing  its  disposition  and  habits.  It  was 
tied  to  a  boat  on  the  deck,  and  in  a  basket  under  the  fore 
part  of  the  boat  it  found  a  partial  shelter  from  the  rain  and 
the  wind.  It  conveyed  its  food,  boiled  rice  and  fruit,  to  its 
mouth  by  the  hand.  It  was  gentle  and  sociable,  seemingly 


480  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xvi. 

grateful  for  any  trifling  notice  or  kindness.  I  frequently 
gave  it  water,  which  it  lapped  like  a  dog,  and  occasionally 
a  banana ;  and  in  a  short  time  it  seemed  to  watch  my  move- 
ments whenever  I  came  on  deck,  jumping  on  my  arm  or 
shoulder  if  I  approached  the  boat ;  but  was  most  delighted 
when,  attaching  a  long  line  to  the  short  piece  tied  round  its 
body,  I  loosened  it  from  the  boat  and  allowed  it  to  run  up 
the'  cords  or  rigging,  which  it  ascended  with  astonishing 
ease  and  speed,  sitting  sometimes  with  apparent  pleasure 
on  the  extremity  of  the  yard.  It  was  scrupulously  clean, 
and  seemed  unable  to  endure  any  tar  or  other  dirt  on  its 


TIIE  LEMlXi. 


shaggy  coat.  One  morning,  during  a  heavy  gale  of  wind, 
when  there  was  much  motion  in  the  ship  and  great  confu- 
sion and  noise  among  the  sailors,  the  lemur  seemed  unusu- 
ally excited,  and  repeatedly  raised  itself  upon  its  hind  legs, 
and  clapped  its  hands  together,  and  chattered  loud  in  a 
most  extraordinary  manner,  occasioning  great  uneasiness 
among  our  crew  of  Malagasy  sailors,  who  declared  it  was 
an  omen  of  evil  to  the  ship,  and  that  some  fearful  calamity 


CHAP.  xvi.      LYCOPODIUMS  AND  OTHER  PLANTS.  481 

might  be  expected.  I  had  felt  so  much  interest  in  the  so- 
ciable and  apparently  gentle  animal  on  board  our  ship  that 
I  should  have  been  glad  to  have  seen  some  of  its  species  in 
their  own  forest  homes ;  but,  though  numbers  were  evi- 
dently near,  none  of  them  came  within  sight. 

Soon  after  crossing  the  first  river  in  the  forest  I  saw  some 
beautiful  lycopodiums  growing  near  the  margin  of  the 
stream ;  and  I  always  found  them  growing  more  luxuriant- 
ly near  the  water  than  in  any  other  place.  I  immediately 
left  my  palanquin  in  order  to  examine  them.  They  had  the 
habit  of  L.  umbrosum,  but  more  open.  I  dug  up  a  number 
of  the  plants,  kneading  the  clayey  soil  in  which  they  were 
growing  into  a  sort  of  ball,  and  giving  the  man  who  was 
carrying  my  plants  special  charges  respecting  them.  I  then 
walked  on  for  about  an  hour,  when  I  found  large  clusters 
of  delicate  ferns,  very  much  like  Adiantum  tenuifolium,  but 
more  compact,  differing  also  in  other  respects,  and  new  to 
me.  I  gathered  as  many  of  the  ripe  ferns  as  I  could ;  and 
soon  afterward  found  some  plants  with  delicately-penciled 
and  variegated  leaves,  and  dwarf  succulent  stems.  The 
leaves  greatly  resembled  those  of  the  echites,  though  the 
habit  of  the  plant  was  herbaceous  and  not  shrubby. 

This  part  of  my  journey  was  perfect  enjoyment.  The 
slipperiness  of  the  clayey  path,  or  of  the  smooth,  round  in- 
terlaced roots  of  the  gigantic  trees,  and  the  wet  and  tangled 
brushwood,  with  occasional  piles  or  fragments  of  rock,  were 
scarcely  felt  to  be  impediments,  under  the  influence  of  the 
pleasure  produced  by  the  frequent  appearance  of  a  new 
plant  or  flower  of  beauty  or  rarity.  But  by  nine  o'clock  it 
began  to  rain ;  and,  considering  that  two  of  my  fellow-trav- 
elers were  suffering  from  fever,  and  that  we  had  still  the 
most  dangerous  districts  to  pass,  I  was  obliged,  not  perhaps 
without  a  slight  feeling  of  disappointment,  to  relinquish  my 
pleasant  pursuit,  and  seek  the  shelter  of  the  palanquin. 

The  rain  increased,  and  the  path  became  so  slippery  that 
HH 


482  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  xvi. 

i  more  than  once  requested  the  men  to  let  me  get  down  and 
walk,  even  in  the  rain.  But  they  said  my  weight  was  small, 
and  I  could  never  get  on  on  foot.  Light  as  the  weight  was, 
it  required  the  whole  eight  bearers  great  part  of  the  way, 
not  so  much  to  sustain  the  load  as  to  keep  the  palanquin 
upright,  and  to  pilot  it  up  and  down  the  steep  and  some- 
times intricate  paths.  A  young  chief  kept  before  the  palan- 
quin great  part  of  the  way,  striking  a  spear  into  the  high, 
steep  loam  or  clayey  sides  of  the  path,  and  causing  the  loose 
soil  to  fall  and  spread  like  sand  or  fine  gravel  over  the 
smooth,  slippery  path,  and  thus  to  prevent  the  feet  of  the 
bearers  from  sliding  from  under  them.  The  rain  continued, 
and  the  low  or  level  parts  of  the  way  were  overflowed ;  but 
we  were  still  able  to  keep  on.  I  admired  the  skill,  address, 
and  care  of  the  bearers,  while  I  could  not  help  feeling  some 
anxiety  for  their  safety  as  well  as  my  own. 

When  a  short  space  of  comparatively  level  or  easy  path 
allowed  me  to  look  round,  I  was  somewhat  tantalized  to  see 
fine  patches  of  novel-looking  ferns,  or  other  new  kinds  of 
plants,  some  of  which  I  had  noticed  on  my  way  up,  request- 
ing my  attendants  to  mark  the  spots  where  they  grew.  And 
there  they  were,  looking  as  fresh  and  attractive  as  ever;  but 
I  was  obliged  to  leave  them,  with  the  hope  that  some  future 
traveler  might  pass  through  the  forest  in  more  favorable 
weather,  and  secure  what  I  was  compelled  to  relinquish ; 
for  I  had  not  the  heart  to  ask  the  men  to  stop  in  the  heavy 
rain,  for  the  sake  of  allowing  me  to  obtain  what  to  them 
would  seem  but  a  common  weed,  or  perhaps  a  useless  bunch 
of  berries. 

After  seven  hours'  toilsome  traveling,  we  reached  a  few 
wood-cutters'  huts,  where  we  stopped  to  prepare  breakfast. 
The  rain  still  fell  heavily ;  but,  after  resting  a  little  more 
than  an  hour,  we  traveled  on  to  a  few  huts  at  a  place  called 
Irihitra,  where  we  halted  for  the  night  in  one  of  the  houses 
which  the  friendly  villagers  vacated  for  our  accommodation. 


CHAP.  xvi.        MEETING  WITH  FRENCH  PRIESTS.  483 

The  next  morning  was  fine,  and  we  started  early.  About 
ten  o'clock,  when  descending  toward  Beforana,  we  met  a 
number  of  travelers  on  their  way  up  to  Imerina ;  and  on 
inquiry  I  was  informed  that  the  principal  personage  was  a 
French  doctor,  from  Eeunion  or  Bourbon,  proceeding  to  the 
capital.  He  was  accompanied  by  two  other  foreigners,  one 
of  whom,  I  was  afterward  told,  was  a  Koman  Catholic  priest, 
L'Abb6  Jouan,  superior  of  the  Jesuit  college  at  Bourbon, 
who  was  accompanying  the  doctor  in  the  capacity  of  assist- 
ant. Another  priest,  L'Abbe*  Webber  I  was  told,  was  ac- 
companying the  doctor  as  pharmacien.  The  bearers  trav- 
eled on  tolerably  well  with  two  of  the  travelers ;  but  the 
men  bearing  the  worthy  superior,  a  somewhat  portly  fig- 
ure, seemed  to  be  perspiring  profusely  under  their  burden ; 
and  I  could  scarcely  imagine  how,  in  such  weather  as  we 
had  had,  they  would  ever  make  their  way  along  the  forest 
roads. 

Shortly  afterward  I  met  M.  Soumagne,  a  French  trader, 
from  whom  I  had  received  much  kindness  at  Tamatave. 
He  was  traveling  to  Antananarivo,  for  commercial  pur- 
poses, in  company  with  the  son  of  the  late  chief  judge  of 
the  Province  of  Tamatave.  The  judge's  son  was  followed 
by  a  large  retinue,  including  musicians,  and  dancers,  and 
singing-women.  A  large  drum,  carried  on  a  pole  between 
two  men,  was  one  of  the  first  portions  of  his  baggage  that 
we  had  passed.  On  meeting  we  each  alighted ;  and,  after 
conversing  a  short  time,  M.  Soumagne  gave  me  the  wel- 
come tidings  that  he  had  letters  for  me  from  England. 
After  pursuing  my  journey  for  some  time  we  breakfasted 
at  Beforana,  where  the  chiefs  who  accompanied  me  found 
those  in  charge  of  part  of  the  luggage  belonging  to  the 
travelers  we  had  passed ;  and  among  them  the  news  from 
the  coast  and  the  capital  was  soon  discussed. 

Before  we  set  out  again  a  young  chief,  whom  I  had  miss- 
ed from  the  company  while  we  were  passing  through  the 


484  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xvi. 

forest,  came  up,  followed  by  a  man  bearing  a  large  basket 
of  orchidaceous  plants,  such  as  he  had  seen  me  endeavoring 
to  collect.  I  was  delighted  with  the  plants,  some  of  them 
being  new,  and  engaged  the  man  to  carry  them  on  to  the 
coast.  Two  days  after  we  halted  for  a  day's  rest.  It  was 
the  Sabbath,  and,  as  another  of  my  bearers  was  now  suffer- 
ing from  fever  and  all  seemed  fatigued,  the  day's  rest  was 
as  welcome  to  them  as  grateful  to  my  own  mind. 

At  the  close  of  the  following  day's  journey  we  reached 
Ranomafana,  near  the  hot  springs ;  and,  half  a  mile  before 
entering  the  village,  I  saw  a  beautiful  shrub  in  bloom.  The 
flowers  were  composite,  and  resembling  the  poivrea,  but  of 
a  bright  scarlet  color  I  dug  up  with  a  spade  a  few  young 
plants,  and,  keeping  the  roots  in  a  ball  of  earth,  brought 
them  away,  and  have  succeeded  in  bringing  two  of  them 
alive  to  England.  Our  way  now  lay  through  a  most  de- 
lightful and  verdant  country.  The  bamboo,  traveler's-tree, 
and  rofia  palm  were  abundant,  and  growing  most  luxuri- 
antly. After  picking  up  some  new  plants  almost  every 
day,  and  obtaining,  among  others,  some  masses  of  a  new 
species  of  platycerum,  or  stag's-horn  fern,  I  reached  Tama- 
tave  in  safety  on  the  12th  of  October,  grateful  for  the  pro- 
tection from  all  accident  or  fever  which  I  had  experienced, 
and  thankful  to  find  myself  so  far  on  my  homeward  way. 
The  house  I  had  formerly  occupied  was  again  furnished  for 
my  use,  and  every  assistance  rendered  by  the  authorities  of 
tne  place.  I  paid  the  bearers  whom  the  queen  had  provid- 
ed the  same  amount  as  those  hired  on  my  former  journey. 

While  waiting  here  for  a  ship  I  examined  my  plants,  and 
found  many  killed  by  the  sun  and  drought  during  the  lat- 
ter part  of  the  journey.  I  placed  those  that  were  still  alive 
in  the  shade,  hoping  to  preserve  them,  and  invigorate  them 
for  the  voyage.  I  also  visited  a  river  about  eighteen  miles 
distant,  to  see  the  situations  in  which  the  Ouvirandra  fenes- 
tralis  grew,  and  found  it  in  a  sluggish  river  about  twenty 


CHAP.  xvi.  PROXIMITY  TO  A  CROCODILE.  487 

yards  wide,  and  three  or  four  feet  deep  in  the  centre,  with 
a  sandy,  alluvial  bottom,  and  a  considerable  deposit  of  sand 
and  mud  around  the  crowns  of  the  plants,  indicating  that 
the  deposit  of  soil  brought  down  by  the  frequent  rain  from 
higher  parts  of  the  country  formed  a  sort  of  top-dressing 
for  the  plants.  A  large  plant  which  I  procured  I  preserved, 
at  Sir  William  Hooker's  suggestion,  in  ajar  of  spirits,  and 
it  is  now  in  the  museum  of  the  Royal  Gardens  at  Kew. 

As  we  passed  along,  we  saw  a  woman  seated  on  a  piece 
of  wood  which  jutted  out  into  the  water,  eating  a  banana, 
and  drinking  of  the  stream ;  the  chief  who  was  with  me  in 
the  boat  warned  her  away,  lest  she  should  be  seized  by  a 
crocodile,  of  which,  he  said,  there  were  numbers  in  the 
river.  A  few  yards  farther  on,  a  monster,  shining  and 
brown  like  the  bank  of  mud  on  which  he  was  lying,  ap- 
peared not  many  yards  from  our  canoe.  It  was  about  seven 
feet  long,  and  so  still  that  I  thought  it  was  dead,  and, 
pointing  to  it,  the  chief,  expecting  that  I  wished  to  ap- 
proach, called  out  with  a  most  startling  earnestness,  "Away! 
away !  It  is  not  dead,  nor  yet  asleep."  Looking  more  in- 
tently, I  saw  that  its  tail  did  not  lie  straight  out,  but  was 
rather  curved ;  clearly  showing  it  to  be  alive.  We  were 
at  the  time  rowing  along  the  edge  of  a  large  plantation  of 
sugar-cane ;  and  one  of  the  laborers  belonging  to  the  plant- 
ation, who  was  in  the  canoe,  stated  that  crocodiles  there 
were  numerous  and  savage ;  that  two  or  three  of  the  slaves 
belonging  to  the  plantation  were  almost  every  year  carried 
off  by  these  reptiles. 

While  waiting  at  Tamatave  I  had  a  good  opportunity 
for  using  my  cameras,  and  many  of  the  chiefs  and  others 
were  gratified  by  having  their  likenesses  taken.  At  the 
same  time  I  also  secured  a  view  of  my  own  residence,  to- 
gether with  the  street  in  Tamatave  of  which  it  formed  a 
part,  as  well  as  of  a  number  of  the  chiefs  and  others  in 
their  ordinary  dress,  sitting  or  standing  under  the  veran- 


488  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xvi. 

das,  as  they  often  appeared  during  the  after-part  of  the 
day.*  I  also  printed  off  proofs  from  the  negatives  I  had 
taken  at  the  capital,  which  I  put  in  glass  frames,  and  sent 
to  their  respective  owners,  who  have  since  acknowledged 
the  pleasure  their  arrival  afforded  them. 

Most  of  the  leading  persons  at  Tamatave  came  to  see  the 
likenesses  of  the  members  of  the  Hova  court  at  the  capital. 
Many  of  the  friends  of  the  prince,  when  they  looked  at  the 
full-length  likeness  of  him  which  I  had  taken,  took  off 
their  hats  and  respectfully  saluted  the  picture,  pronouncing 
his  name  with  emphasis,  and  adding,  "  Veloma  Tompoko," 
"  May  you  live,  sovereign  or  lord."  Few  of  the  visitors 
interested  me  more  than  the  widow  of  the  late  M.  De  Las- 
telle,  daughter  of  one  of  the  late  hereditary  chiefs  of  the 
Betsimasaraka,  or  race  inhabiting  this  part  of  the  country, 
and  whose  ancestors,  until  within  the  last  half  century,  had 
been  accustomed  to  regard  the  ancestors  of  Eadama  and 
the  reigning  families  of  the  Hovas  as  greatly  their  inferiors, 
and  the  Hovas  as  by  no  means  their  equals.  She  gazed 
earnestly  at  the  full-length  likeness  of  the  princess,  for  a 
long  time  repeatedly  uttering,  "  And  that  is  Eabodo !"  Sev- 
eral persons  came  more  than  once  and  begged  to  look  at 
the  pictures. 

I  often  had  occasion  to  notice  the  manner  in  which  the 
natives  measure  short  periods  of  time.  When  asked  how 
long  it  would  require  to  walk  to  a  certain  place,  they  would 
answer  by  the  time  it  took  to  cook  a  pan  or  pans  of  rice, 
saying,  It  will  require  as  long  as  one  cooking  of  rice,  or 

*  It  is  perhaps  but  just,  in  connection  with  this  subject,  to  state  that  my 
camera — which  was  large,  capable  of  taking  a  picture  sixteen  inches  square — 
and  the  other  apparatus  worked  well  the  whole  time,  and  seemed  scarcely 
affected  either  by  the  intense  and  dry  heat  of  the  capital  or  the  saturating 
moisture  after  the  heavy  rains  on  the  coast.  The  camera  was  of  mahogany, 
and  light,  and  stood  much  better  than  cameras  of  walnut,  which  I  had 
taken  out  on  my  former  visits.  The  apparatus  was  all  made  by  Messrs. 
Murray  and  Heath,  of  Piccadilly. 


CHAP.  xvi.     KINDNESS  EXPERIENCED  AT  TAMATAVE.        489 

two  cookings  of  rice,  each  cooking  of  rice  being  from  twen- 
ty minutes  to  half  an  hour ;  and  I  was  much  struck  with 
the  similarity  of  customs  prevailing  among  people  in  the 
early  periods  of  their  social  organization,  though  placed  in 
circumstances  otherwise  different  and  exceedingly  remote, 
by  reading,  in  that  most  interesting  account  of  the  arctic 
regions  by  Dr.  Kane,  that  the  Ostiaks,  in  Liben,  measure 
time  by  the  time  of  cooking  a  kettle  of  food  or  a  meal. 
Few,  if  any  other,  coincidences  probably  exist  between  the 
customs  of  the  arctic  regions  and  those  of  Madagascar. 

Nothing  could  exceed  the  kindness  manifested  toward 
me  during  my  stay  at  the  coast.  A  bullock  was  presented 
by  the  prince's  friends,  and  was  killed  for  the  people  living 
with  me,  and  poultry  and  other  articles  were  brought  every 
day.  One  man  would  bring  as  much  fuel  as  was  needed 
for  the  day,  and  would  receive  no  payment  in  return.  I 
took  his  likeness  with  a  couple  of  bundles  of  fire-wood  on  a 
pole  over  his  shoulder,  and  left  it  with  him  as  a  memorial 
of  his  generous  consideration.  While  remaining  here,  I 
had  one  very  sharp  attack  of  illness,  which,  however,  did 
not  last  long,  and  under  no  circumstances  could  I  have  been 
more  carefully  watched  and  attended  to  than  by  my  friends 
at  Tamatave. 

At  length  the  Castro  arrived,  bringing  me  a  note  from  one 
of  the  owners,  "W.  L'Estrange,  Esq.,  generously  offering  me 
a  passage  to  Mauritius,  which  I  gratefully  accepted. 

I  had  spent  many  hours  in  very  pleasant  conversation 
with  friends  from  the  capital  jand  the  neighborhood ;  and  as 
these  seasons  now  drew  to  a  close,  they  seemed  to  be  more 
interesting  and  valuable.  When  the  ship  was  ready  to  take 
in  her  cargo  the  governor  sent  me  the  ten  oxen  which  the 
queen  had  ordered  him  to  give  me  as  her  present.  They 
were  fine  animals,  and  were  taken  on  board  with  those  for 
the  Governor  of  Mauritius.  The  agent  of  the  prince  also 
presented  an  ox,  as  a  present  to  the  captain  of  the  ship,  with 


490  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR. .  CHAP,  xvi. 

expressions  of  thanks  for  the  attentions  he  had  shown  me 
on  the  voyage. 

The  evening  of  the  17th  of  November,  1856,  was  the  time 
fixed  for  our  departure ;  and  after  taking  leave  of  the  for- 
eign residents,  I  walked  down  to  the  beach,  accompanied 
by  the  aid-de-camp  of  the  prince,  and  chiefs  and  friends  to 
the  number  of  twenty.  On  my  way  I  met  the  captain  and 
several  friends  coming  to  see  if  I  was  ready.  We  soon 
reached  the  shore ;  and  then,  after  repeated  and  most  affec- 
tionate farewells  from  my  friends,  I  joined  the  captain,  who 
was  already  in  the  boat,  and  before  ten  o'clock  was  in  the 
cabin  of  the  Castro.  Sodra,  my  faithful  attendant,  had  ar- 
ranged my  berth,  and  waited  to  bid  me  farewell,  after  which 
he  returned  to  the  shore,  having  during  the  day  applied  in 
vain  to  the  authorities  of  the  port  for  permission  to  accom- 
pany me  to  Mauritius. 

By  six  o'clock  on  the  18th  we  were  under  weigh.  The 
wind  was  fair,  and  during  the  first  three  days  we  passed 
over  two  thirds  of  the  distance  to  Mauritius.  But  calms 
and  contrary  winds  detained  us  at  sea  sixteen  days,  and  it 
was  not  until  the  2d  of  December  that  we  reached  Port 
Louis.  The  medical  officer  who  came  on  board  to  examine 
our  ship,  delivered  a  letter  from  Commodore  (now  Admiral) 
Trotter,  then  in  the  harbor ;  and  on  my  way  to  the  shore  I 
called  on  board  the  frigate,  and  spent  some  time  with  the 
commodore,  whom  I  had  previously  met  at  the  Cape  of 
Good  Hope. 

On  reaching  the  shore  I  found  that  death  had  again  re- 
duced the  circle  of  my  friends ;  but  I  was  cordially  wel- 
comed by  the  survivors,  and  took  up  my  abode  beneath  the 
friendly  and  hospitable  roof  of  M.  Lebrun.  In  company 
with  Commodore  Trotter  I  visited  Reduit,  where  I  met  a 
number  of  other  friends,  and  afterward  spent  my  Christmas 
with  the  governor  and  his  family.  I  also  accompanied  the 
Bishop  of  Mauritius  and  some  of  the  officers  of  government 


CHAP.  xvi.  STORM  ON  THE  OCEAN.  491 

on  board  the  commodore's  ship,  where  I  met  a  gentleman 
recently  from  Bourbon,  from  whom  I  obtained  much  valu- 
able information.  I  likewise  met  repeatedly  with  Mr.  Lay- 
ard  from  the  Cape,  who,  for  purposes  of  science,  was  voy- 
aging with  the  commodore.  During  my  stay  I  also  shared 
the  hospitality  of  Major-general  Hay,  commander  of  the 
forces  at  Mauritius,  and  found  myself  again  a  guest  at 
Cerne,  with  the  Honorable  Judge  Surtees  and  Mr.  William 
L'Estrange.  Mr.  Dowland,  acting  colonial  secretary,  also 
offered  me  the  hospitality  of  his  country  residence,  until  at 
length  the  steamer  England  arrived  at  Port  Louis ;  and  on 
board  this  fine  vessel,  commanded  by  Captain  Dundas,  I 
embarked  for  England  on  the  13th  of  January,  1857. 

It  was  the  season  of  cyclones,  or  hurricanes,  and  these 
atmospheric  disturbances  are  as  frequent  and  as  violent  in 
the  neighborhood  of  Mauritius  as  in  any  other  part  of  the 
world.  A  few  days  after  we  had  left  the  island  we  expe- 
rienced as  severe  a  gale  and  as  high  a  sea  as  I  remember 
ever  to  have  witnessed  either  off  Cape  Horn  or  the  Cape  of 
Good  Hope.  We  could  only  show  canvas  enough  to  keep 
the  ship  steady,  and  yet  were  driven  along  at  a  fearful  rate, 
while  the  sea  broke  in  cascades  first  over  one  side  of  the 
bulwarks  and  then  the  other;  and,  rolling  like  a  torrent 
fore  and  aft  as  the  ship  rose  or  sunk  with  the  waves,  swept 
away  every  thing  that  was  not  secured  by  fastenings.  Our 
captain  regarded  it  as  the  tail  of  a  hurricane,  more  especial- 
ly as  the  wind  changed  rapidly  to  opposite  quarters.  After 
the  second  day,  however,  the  weather  became  moderate,  and 
we  pursued  our  voyage  without  inconvenience. 

Two  days  afterward,  viz.,  on  the  21st  of  January,  while 
sitting  in  the  captain's  state-room  waiting  for  him  to  mark 
our  position  on  the  chart,  I  took  from  his  shelves  a  book  in 
which  I  soon  became  interested.  When  we  had  looked  at 
the  chart  I  remarked  that  I  had  met  with  an  old  friend 
whom  I  did  not  expect  to  find  on  board  the  England,  and 


492  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xvi. 

held  up  "  The  Loss  of  the  Winterton,  East  Indiaman,"  by 
the  late  Mr.  Buchan,  of  Kelloe,  observing  that  I  knew  the 
author,  from  whom  I  had  many  years  ago  received  a  copy 
of  his  book. 

Captain  Dundas  replied  that  Mr.  Buchan  was  related 
to  his  mother,  and  that  the  captain  of  the  Winterton,  was 
his  grandfather.  I  then  recollected  that  Dundas  was  the 
name  of  the  captain  who  had  perished  in  the  wreck.  Aft- 
er remarking  that  we  were  not  far  from  the  place  where 
the  wreck  occurred  Captain  Dundas  went  on  deck.  In  a 
few  moments  I  heard  the  cry  "  A  wreck !  a  wreck !"  and, 
hastening  to  the  poop,  saw  on  the  larboard  bow  a  small 
flag  or  signal  of  blue  cloth,  distinct  among  the  tops  of  the 
waves,  and  about  two  miles  off.  In  a  few  minutes  more  I 
discerned  a  sort  of  raft,  with  two  figures,  a  white  man  and 
a  man  of  color,  sitting  upon  it,  up  to  the  waist  in  the  sea. 

The  flag  of  the  England  had  been  hoisted — symbol  of 
help  and  deliverance — to  signal  to  the  castaways  that  they 
were  seen,  and  the  ship's  course  was  altered.  Meanwhile, 
one  of  the  boats  was  lowered,  and,  manned  by  five  stout, 
willing  hands,  was  pushed  off  toward  the  raft.  While  the 
oars  rattled  with  each  stroke,  and  the  light  boat  seemed  to 
spring  over  the  waves,  with  our  tall,  stout  second  officer, 
Mr.  Peters,  standing  with  the  steer-oar  in  the  stern,  every 
eye  on  board  was  stretched  toward  the  same  point;  the 
sailors  leaning  over  from  the  forecastle  and  fore  rigging; 
the  officers  and  passengers  straining  over  the  bulwarks  of 
the  poop;  ladies  with  their  children,  all  gazing  with  the 
most  intense  interest  as  our  boat  approached  the  raft.  No 
one  moved ;  not  a  word  was  uttered ;  even  breathing  seem- 
ed difficult ;  but  when  the  first  man,  and  then  the  second — 
stiff,  benumbed,  and  swollen  with  the  water — had  been 
safely  lifted  into  the  boat,  the  pent-up  feeling  found  utter- 
ance in  the  almost  simultaneous  exclamation,  "They  are 
saved!"  which  was  heard  from  stem  to  stern  along  the  side 


CHAP.  xvi.      RESCUE  OF  SHIPWRECKED  SAILORS.  493 

of  our  ship.  Some  persons  near  me  wept,  others  seemed 
ready  to  faint  under  emotions  of  sympathy  and  joy. 

Our  boat  was  soon  alongside,  and,  swollen,  bruised,  and 
bleeding,  the  men  were  helped  over  the  ship's  side  into  the 
cabin.  Not  wishing  to  add  to  the  pressing  crowd  I  remain- 
ed on  deck.  A  few  moments  afterward  I  heard  the  captain 
call,  "  Mr.  Ellis !  here  is  a  Sandwich  Islander.  Come  and 
speak  to  him."  I  went  into  the  cabin,  where  the  two  men 
were  sitting  on  the  deck.  The  white  man  was  the  captain 
of  a  ship  which  had  been  upset  in  the  violent  gale  two  days 
before,  when  every  one  on  board,  twenty-two  in  number, 
except  the  two  just  rescued,  had  perished.  The  islander,  a 
young  man,  was  one  of  the  crew ;  and,  having  made  no  an- 
swer to  the  questions  addressed  to  him  by  our  humane  cap- 
tain, I  had  been  called  down. 

The  man  was  sitting  on  the  deck,  his  head  bent  down, 
and  his  long,  black,  and  dripping  hair  hanging  over  his 
eyes  and  down  his  face.  Looking  at  him,  I  said,  "  Aroha, 
ehoaino,  aroha:"  Salutation,  dear  friend — affection.  The 
man  lifted  up  his  head,  swept  with  his  hand  his  long,  black 
hair  to  one  side  of  his  forehead,  and,  looking  earnestly  at 
me  like  one  to  whom  consciousness  was  but  just  returning, 
and  startled  by  the  sound  of  his  native  language,  returned 
my  salutation.  In  answer  to  a  few  inquiries  he  told  me  he 
was  a  native  of  Oahu,  the  island  on  which  I  had  at  one 
time  resided.  He  said  he  was  up  aloft  furling  sail,  when 
the  ship  suddenly  went  over,  and  all,  in  an  instant,  were 
plunged  into  the  deep ;  that  there  were  other  islanders  on 
board,  but  they  soon  sank.  The  doctor  of  our  ship  then 
gave  the  men  a  little  suitable  refreshment,  and  they  were 
wrapped  in  flannels  and  put  to  bed.  Captain  Dundas  took 
the  raft,  a  very  fragile  affair,  and  brought  it  to  England,  in- 
tending to  deposit  it  in  the  Crystal  Palace. 

The  next  day  I  went  down  to  the  berths  where  the  Sand- 
wich Islander  was  lying,  and  found  him  very  much  revived. 


494  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR  CHAP.  xn. 

After  conversing  with  him  about  the  wreck  and  the  loss  of 
all  his  shipmates  I  said,  "God  has  very  mercifully  preserved 
you.  You  must  remember  his  goodness,  and  pray  to  him." 
He  said,  "  I  did  pray  to  him  in  the  night,  when  I  was  in  the 
sea.  I  did  pray  to  God  in  the  morning,  when  I  saw  the  cap- 
tain ;  I  prayed  that  we  might  be  saved.  And  God  sent 
away  death,  and  sent  your  ship,  and  we  are  here."  I  said, 
"  I  am  glad  you  prayed  to  God.  You  must  be  thankful  to 
God,  and  serve  him,  and  love  him.  You  must  try  to  praise 
God  in  your  future  life." 

I  then  repeated  the  first  two  lines  of  a  hymn  which  I  had 
written,  among  the  first  ever  composed  in  the  language  of 
the  Sandwich  Islands,  when  I  was  a  missionary  in  that  coun- 
try. The  lines  are  these : 

"  He  Akua  hemolele 
Ke  Akua  no  kakou." 

"  A  God  of  perfection  or  goodness  is  our  God."  The  man's 
countenance  brightened  as  I  repeated  these  lines,  and  as 
soon  as  I  had  ceased  he  took  up  the  strain  where  I  had  left 
off,  repeating  the  two  concluding  lines  and  the  remaining 
verses  with  evident  satisfaction.  I  said,  "  Where  did  you 
learn  that  hymn  ?"  He  replied,  "  In  the  school  of  the  mis- 
sionaries at  Oahu."  That  was  the  island  in  which  I  had 
resided.  I  then  said,  "  I  wrote  that  hymn  many  years  ago, 
wh^n  I  lived  in  the  Sandwich  Islands."  He  looked  at  me 
with  still  greater  astonishment,  and  said,  "Who  are  you?" 
I  said,  "  I  am  Mika  Eliki"  (the  native  pronunciation  of  my 
name),  "  and  I  was  a  missionary  at  Oahu  with  Mr.  Bing- 
ham,  Mr.  Thurston,  and  others."  He  seemed  surprised  and 
pleased ;  said  he  knew  the  missionaries  who  were  now  at 
the  islands;  that  his  brother  was  a  native  teacher  in  the 
Sandwich  Islands,  and  his  sister  a  Christian. 

It  had  been  my  privilege  to  labor  in  harmonious  co- 
operation with  the  able  and  devoted  American  missionaries 
first  sent  to  the  Sandwich  Islands.  Having  a  knowledge 


CHAP.  xvi.  SINGULAR  AND  ENCOURAGING  INCIDENT.          495 

of  the  language  at  Tahiti,  which  varies  but  slightly  from 
that  of  Hawaii,  I  had  assisted  in  forming  the  Hawaiian 
alphabet,  and  fixing  the  orthography  of  the  native  lan- 
guage, as  well  as  in  other  departments  of  missionary  labor. 

More  than  thirty  years  had  passed  away  since  I  had  left 
those  islands,  and  it  was  an  unexpected  satisfaction  to  my 
own  mind  to  find  that  the  Christian  sentiments  embodied 
in  a  simple  hymn,  which  had  been  prepared  chiefly  with  a 
view  to  implanting  seeds  of  truth  in  the  minds  of  the 
young,  had  afforded  consolation  and  support  to  the  mind 
of  a  native  of  those  islands  in  the  lonely  solitude  of  a  -dis- 
tant ocean,  amid  the  perils  of  shipwreck,  and  the  prospect 
of  death ;  and  I  mention  this  circumstance  for  the  encour- 
agement of  other  laborers  in  the  cause  of  humanity  and 
religion,  that  they  may  cast  their  bread  upon  the  waters 
and  labor  on,  in  the  assurance  that  no  sincere  effor^  will 
be  altogether  in  vain,  though  its  results  should  never  be 
known. 

The  ship  from  which  these  two  men  were  saved  was  the 
Henry  Crappo,  from  Dartmouth,  Massachusetts,  a  whaler, 
full,  and  homeward  bound.  Many  particulars  of  their  peril 
were  afterward  related  to  us  by  the  captain.  While  drift- 
ing on  their  raft  they  had  been  pursued  by  two  sharks. 
One  attempted  to  seize  them,  but  by  drawing  up  their  legs 
from  the  water  as  well  as  they  were  able,  and  chopping  at 
their  assailant  with  a  small  hatchet  found  in  the  fragment 
of  the  boat  of  which  their  raft  was  constructed,  they  suc- 
ceeded in  driving  him  away.  They  had  been  two  days 
and  two  nights  in  the  sea,  and  the  only  refreshment  they 
had  had  was  a  small  lime  or  lemon  which  the  captain  found 
in  his  pocket,  and,  cutting  it  in  half,  divided  with  his  com- 
panion, and  a  piece  of  a  pumpkin  from  their  own  ship, 
which  floated  past  on  the  following  day. 

Soon  after  this  incident  we  reached  the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope,  where  our  rescued  mariners  left  us  to  proceed  to 


496  VISITS  TO  MADAGASCAR.  CHAP.  xvi. 

America.  Sailing  from  this  port  we  touched  at  St.  Helena 
and  the  Island  of  Ascension,  and  by  the  care  of  a  watchful 
and  gracious  Providence  reached  England  in  safety  on  the 
20th  of  March,  1857. 


APPENDIX. 


BRIEF   REMARKS   ON   THE  MALAGASY   LANGUAGE. 

IT  will  be  apparent,  from  several  statements  in  the  preceding 
pages,  that  my  knowledge  of  the  native  language  was  but  limited. 
I  had,  however,  with  the  assistance  of  the  missionaries,  previously 
made  myself  acquainted  with  its  structure  and  general  principles, 
for  the  purpose  of  tracing  its  affinities  with  the  languages  of  Poly- 
nesia ;  and  I  had  given  some  attention  to  the  grammars  of  Messrs. 
Baker  and  Griffiths,  as  well  as  to  the  dictionaries  of  Messrs.  Free- 
man and  Johns,  and  to  the  Scriptures  and  other  books  translated 
into  Malagasy.  I  was  also,  during  my  sojourn  in  the  country, 
constantly  among  the  people,  occasionally  with  one  or  more  of  the 
natives  who  understood  English,  but  generally  with  those  who 
knew  no  language  besides  their  own.  Under  these  circumstances 
my  residence  in  Madagascar  was  a  continued  lesson  in  the  lan- 
guage ;  and  notwithstanding  the  opinion  expressed  by  a  late  ami- 
able and  distinguished  writer  in  connection  with  language,  that 
"  the  concerns  of  barbarians  unconnected  and  remote  from  all 
contact  with  literature  or  civilization,  and  destitute  of  all  historic 
records,  will  scarcely  be  thought  to  require  any  great  portion  of* 
attention  from  the  philosophical  inquirer,"  I  am  induced  to  hope 
that  a  brief  notice  of  some  of  the  distinctive  features  of  the  Mala- 
gasy language,  and  the  family  of  languages  to  which  it  belongs, 
may  not  be  inappropriately  added  to  the  narrative  of  my  visits. 

In  the  course  of  my  first  interview  with  the  people  on  shore  I 
was  impressed  with  the  resemblance  in  color,  and  often  in  form 
and  feature,  between  the  Malagasy  and  the  Polynesians ;  and  ask- 

II 


498  APPENDIX. 

ing  the  names  of  some  of  the  common  objects,  I  found  that  tany 
was  the  word  for  earth  or  land,  which  in  some  of  the  Polynesian 
dialects  is  aina  and  tana;  that  lanitra,  pronounced  lanit,  was  tin- 
name  of  heaven  or  sky,  which  in  the  Sandwich  and  other  islands 
is  called  lani  or  langi;  that  mata  signified,  as  it  does  in  Polynesia, 
the  human  face ;  that  nio,  pronounced  niu,  the  name  for  the  cocoa- 
nut-tree,  was  exactly  the  same  as  in  the  South  Sea  Islands ;  and 
that  the  names  of  the  pandanus  and  other  trees  growing  around 
were,  with  slight  variations,  the  same  as  those  used  by  the  Tahi- 
tians  and  Sandwich  Islanders.  These  and  other  coincidences 
greatly  strengthened  my  previously  formed  opinions  as  to  the  close 
resemblance,  if  not  identity,  of  these  languages.  Subsequent  in- 
vestigations furnished  additional  evidence  of  this  resemblance,  not 
only  in  the  signification  of  words  of  the  same  sound,  but  in  the  ar- 
rangement and  grammatical  structure  of  the  language  ;  while  pro- 
tracted intercourse  with  the  people  also  made  me  acquainted  with 
many  important  points  in  which,  in  both  these  respects,  the  lan- 
guages differ  from  each  other. 

One  of  the  most  remarkable  facts  in  connection  with  the  Mala- 
gasy language  is  the  vast  distance  to  which  the  same  language  has 
been  extended.  That  there  is  an  intimate  connection,  if  not  rad- 
ical identity,  between  the  Malayan  and  other  languages  spoken 
throughout  the  Asiatic  Archipelago  and  those  used  by  the  races 
inhabiting  the  islands  spread  over  the  eastern  part  of  the  Pacific 
Ocean  on  the  one  hand,  and  that  spoken  by  the  natives  of  Mada- 
gascar on  the  other,  does  not  now  admit  of  doubt.  Verbal  and 
grammatical  differences  characterize  the  several  families  of  lan- 
guages or  dialects  in  their  respective  regions,  and  also  prevail  to 
some  extent  among  collections  of  languages  or  dialects  belonging 
to  the  same  region ;  but,  underlying  these,  appear  indubitable 
traces  of  one  primitive  language,  of  which  the  verbal  or  structural 
features  may,  in  a  greater  or  less  degree,  still  be  discovered  in 
them  all. 

Regarding  Sumatra  or  the  Malayan  peninsula  as  a  centre,  this 
language  has  extended  to  the  eastward  across  the  Pacific  Ocean 
to  Easter  Island,  a  distance  of  150  degrees  ;  and,  on  the  other  hand, 


APPENDIX.  499 

it  has  stretched  over  the  Indian  Ocean  to  Madagascar,  50  degrees 
to  the  westward,  thus  reaching,  chiefly  within  the  tropics,  over  200 
degrees  of  longitude,  or  20  degrees  more  than  half  the  circumfer- 
ence of  the  globe.  This  same  language  also  prevails  from  the 
Sandwich  Islands,  in  latitude- 23°  30'  N.,  to  New  Zealand,  in  lat- 
itude 40°  S.,  thus  spreading  in  a  direction  north  and  south  over 
70  degrees.  The  latter  two  clusters  of  islands,  although  nearly 
5000  miles  apart,  appear  more  closely  allied  to  each  other  by  lan- 
guage than,  with  one  or  two  exceptions,  either  of  them  is  united 
in  the  same  manner  to  any  of  the  intervening  groups.  The  re- 
searches of  Sir  George  Grey,*  late  governor-in-chief  of  New  Zea- 
land, as  well  as  those  of  Mr.  Hale  of  the  United  States  Exploring 
Expedition,  and  of  Captain  Erskine  of  H.  M.  S.  "  Havannah,"  and 
others,  furnish  conclusive  evidence  that  the  inhabitants  of  the  isl- 
ands of  Eastern  Polynesia  have  a  common  origin  ;  while  some  of 
the  legends  published  by  Sir  George  Grey  would  seem  to  intimate 
that  the  relations  between  the  Sandwich  Islanders  and  the  inhab- 
itants of  New  Zealand  must  have  been  more  than  ordinarily  close. 
The  Hawaiki,  so  conspicuous  in  the  ancient  traditions  of  New 
Zealand,  as  the  country  whence  its  population  was  derived,  would 
seem  to  indicate  a  near  relationship  with  Hawaii,  the  present 
name  of  the  largest  of  the  Sandwich  Islands,  and  may  probably 
connect  both  with  Saivaii,  the  largest  of  the  Navigator's  group, 
and  situated  midway  between  them.  The  probability  that  the  h 

*  Polynesian  Mythology  and  Traditional  History  of  the  New  Zealand 
Eaces.  This  work  by  Sir  G.  Grey  is  not  only  extremely  interesting,  but 
valuable  on  account  of  the  information  it  contains ;  and  it  is  earnestly  to  be 
desired  that  the  missionaries  in  those  regions,  or  other  persons  equally  well 
qualified,  should  be  able,  without  neglecting  more  important  duties,  to  col- 
lect, while  it  is  still  possible  to  do  so,  and  preserve,  as  has  been  done  to 
some  extent  in  the  "Samoan  Keporter,"  the  legendary  history,  and  even 
the  fabulous  mythology  of  other  portions  of  the  same  widely-scattered  fam- 
ily. Such  records,  besides  proving  serviceable  in  communications  with  ex- 
isting races,  would  be  deeply  interesting  to  future  generations  of  the  people, 
whose  destiny,  it  is  to  be  hoped,  is  not  extinction,  but  amalgamation  with 
the  civilized  and  Christian  races,  whose  dominion  is  so  rapidly  advancing 
in  those  distant  regions. 


500  APPENDIX. 

of  the  Eastern  Polynesians  has  been  supplanted  by  the  a  in  the 
dialect  of  the  Navigator's  Islanders  favors  this  conclusion,  and 
assists  in  solving  the  difficulty  resulting  from  the  distance.  It  is 
not  improbable  that,  at  some  remote  period  anterior  to  the  intro- 
duction of  the  sibilant  of  the  Western  Polynesians  into  the  lan- 
guage of  the  Navigator's  Islands,  and  when  the  principal  island 
of  the  latter  group  would  be  designated  Hawaii,  voyagers  proceed- 
ing thence  in  a  southeasterly  direction  reached  New  Zealand ; 
while  others  proceeding  westward,  by  way  of  Kaiatea  and  Tahiti, 
and  then  northward,  ultimately  arrived  at  the  Sandwich  Islands, 
and  gave  the  name  of  the  land  they  had  left  to  the  home  they  had 
found. 

Not  less  remarkable  is  the  extension  of  this  language  westward 
to  Madagascar.  The  western  point  of  this  island  is  not  three 
hundred  miles  from  the  shores  of  Africa,  yet  but  comparatively 
few  words  of  African  origin  have  been  found  in  the  language  of 
its  inhabitants.  On  the  other  hand,  the  nearest  island  of  the  Asi- 
atic Archipelago  is  3000  miles  to  the  eastward  of  Madagascar,  and 
yet  the  resemblance  between  the  language  spoken  by  their  respect- 
ive inhabitants  is  as  close  as  between  that  of  the  former  and  the 
Eastern  Polynesians.  All  the  Malagasy  words  already  adduced 
as  Polynesian  are  also  Malayan  words,  and  the  list  of  words  ap- 
parently identical  in  all  three  might  be  greatly  increased.  Con- 
siderable differences,  nevertheless,  exist  among  the  dialects  spread 
over  so  vast  a  surface ;  but  all  of  them  contain  words  which  seem 
to  have  belonged  to  some  of  the  earliest  languages,  such  as  the 
word  for  father,  in  Malagasy,  Idba,  and  fiaba,  papa,  or  pa,  through- 
out Eastern  Polynesia  and  the  Asiatic  Archipelago.  Some  of  the 
words  are  said  to  be  identical  with  the  Sanscrit,  others  with  the 
Hebrew  and  Arabic,  which,  without  affording  grounds  for  con- 
cluding that  the  language  was  derived  from  either  of  these,  would 
seem  to  warrant  the  inference  that  it  is  not  of  modern  origin. 

Many  words  are  found  in  two  of  these  languages,  and  not  in  the 
third.  Thus  some  words  in  Malagasy  are  identical  with  those  in 
Polynesia,  but  are  not  found  in  the  Asiatic  Archipelago ;  and  the 
same  occurs  in  the  agreement  between  the  two  latter,  as  in  the 


APPENDIX. 


501 


word  vai  or  wai,  ayer,  signifying  water,  which  are  common  to  the 
Malayan  and  Polynesian,  but  are  unknown  in  Madagascar,  where 
the  name  for  water  is  rano  ;  but  in  one  or  more  of  the  islands  of 
the  Archipelago  dano  and  rano  signifies  water.  In  other  instances, 
the  identity  is  more  evident  in  words  common  to  the  Archipelago 
and  Madagascar,  but  unknown  in  the  other  languages,  as  in  orang 
and  olona,  the  word  for  man :  masin,  also,  is  the  word  for  salt  in 
both  these  languages.  But  the  most  conclusive  evidence  of  iden- 
tity is  found  in  the  numerals,  which,  with  but  few  exceptions  and 
exceedingly  slight  variations,  prevail  throughout  the  whole  range 
of  the  language.  This  will  appear  by  glancing  over  the  subjoined 
lists,  two  of  which  are  from  the  Asiatic  Archipelago,  one  from 
Madagascar,  and  the  other  from  Eastern  Polynesia. 


English. 

Malay. 

Nias.              Malagasy. 

Takitian. 

one 

sata 

sara 

isa 

tahi. 

two 

dna 

dua 

roa* 

ma. 

three 

tiga 

tula 

telo 

toru. 

four 

ampat 

ufa 

efatra 

maha. 

five 

lima 

lima 

dimy 

rima. 

six 

anam 

unu  and  ano 

enina 

ono. 

seven 

tujuh 

fitu 

fitu 

hitu. 

eight 

dilapa 

walu 

valo 

varu. 

nine 

simbelan 

suva 

sivy 

iva. 

ten 

pulu 

fulu 

folo 

burn. 

Traces  of  the  numerals  and  other  parts  of  this  language  also 
exist  in  the  languages  of  the  races  inhabiting  Western  Polynesia, 
whose  language  is  said  to  resemble  those  of  some  African  tribes. 

Few  things  appear  more  remarkable  in  connection  with  this 
language  than  the  length  of  time  during  Which  so  large  a  portion 
of  it  has  been  preserved  among  small  detached  communities,  in 
regions  widely  separated,  and  destitute  of  any  means  of  intercourse 
with  each  other.  Sir  George  Grey  expresses  it  as  his  opinion 
that  the  traditions  and  mythology  of  New  Zealand  have  existed 
among  the  inhabitants  of  the  islands  of  the  Pacific  Ocean  for  a 
period  considerably  above  two  thousand  years,  and  the  language 
*  The  o  in  all  Malagasy  words  is  pronounced  as  u. 


502  APPENDIX. 

in  which  those  traditions  are  preserved  must  have  had  an  earlier 
origin.  The  antiquity  of  this  language  is  the  more  wonderful  when 
we  remember  that  it  is,  with  the  exception  of  that  portion  which 
prevails  in  the  Archipelago,  an  oral  language. 

The  languages  of  Polynesia  were  only  spoken  languages,  and 
the  language  of  Madagascar  was,  until  within  the  last  forty  years, 
an  unwritten  language.  The  Portuguese,  by  whom  the  island 
was  discovered,  and  its  other  early  visitors,  found  no  hieroglyph- 
ics, picture-writing,  or  other  kind  of  record  among  its  inhabitants  ; 
and  subsequent  intercourse  has  furnished  no  evidence  of  the  knowl- 
edge of  letters  ever  having  existed  among  the  native  population. 
It  is  true  that,  long  before  Europeans  had  passed  round  the  Cape 
of  Good  Hope,  Moors  and  Arabs  had  visited  Madagascar  for  pur- 
poses of  commerce,  and  had  settled  in  small  numbers  on  several 
parts  of  the  coast.  These  Arabs  and  other  traders  brought  with 
them  their  own  written  language,  which  they  used  in  their  mer- 
cantile transactions  with  the  people.  They  probably  attempted 
also  to  teach  it  to  some  of  the  natives ;  but  it  was  only  the  lan- 
guage of  the  strangers  that  was  written,  and  its  use  appears  to 
have  been  confined  to  the  localities  in  which  they  temporarily  re- 
sided. No  vestiges  remain  of  the  oral  language  of  these  traders 
beyond  a  few  terms  connected  chiefly  with  divination,  astrology, 
and  other  usages  of  Arabic  origin.  The  introduction  of  letters 
early  in  the  present  century,  their  rapidly  extended  use  among 
the  people,  the  formation  of  grammars  exhibiting  the  peculiarity 
of  the  several  parts  of  speech,  do  not  seem  to  have  produced  any 
change  in  the  language  as  used  by  the  people  themselves ;  and  the 
language  of  Madagascar  appears  to  retain  at  the  present  time  all 
the  distinctive  qualities  by  which  it  was  characterized  when  brought 
by  the  first  settlers  to  the  country,  excepting  so  far  as  it  may  have 
been  modified  by  themselves.  The  few  new  words  which  foreign 
objects  have  rendered  necessary  have  been  so  altered,  in  order  to 
adapt  them  to  native  use,  as  to  leave  but  little  resemblance  to 
their  original  forms. 

This  language  exhibits  a  singular  instance,  paradoxical  as  it 
may  appear,  of  a  people  in  a  comparatively  low  grade  of  civiliza- 


APPENDIX.  503 

tion  possessing  and  using  a  language  copious,  precise,  and  in  some 
respects  highly  philosophical.  And  this  circumstance  naturally 
suggests  deeply-interesting  inquiries,  not  only  in  reference  to  the 
origin  of  the  races  now  inhabiting  that  country,  but  also  in  rela- 
tion to  those  of  other  countries  existing  in  similar  circumstances, 
and  with  the  peculiarities  and  affinities  of  whose  languages  the 
pioneers  of  religion  and  civilization  are  daily  increasing  our  ac- 
quaintance, and  thus  adding  new  evidences  of  the  unity  of  the 
human  race. 

In  contemplating  the  peculiarities  of  the  Malagasy  language,  it 
seems  scarcely  possible  to  avoid  associating  ethnological  with  phi- 
lological inquiries,  and  we  feel  impelled  to  ask  whether  the  races 
by  which  this  language  is  now  spoken  have  been  derived  from  a 
parent  race  possessing  at  the  period  of  their  separation,  whenever 
such  separation  may  have  taken  place,  a  high  degree  of  civiliza- 
tion, and  whether  they  have  passed  along  a  gradually  descending - 
scale  until  they  have  reached  the  depressed  level  at  which  indubi- 
table traces  of  that  parent  language  are  still  found  ?  And  far- 
ther, we  are  inclined  to  ask,  is  the  language  of  a  people,  when 
highly  cultivated,  retained  by  scattered  portions  of  that  people 
long  after  other  elements  of  the  civilization  of  the  parent  race 
have  ceased  among  its  widely-separated  descendants?  It  seems 
scarcely  possible  that  the  natives  of  Madagascar,  certainly  not  the 
lowest  of  the  races  among  whose  language  a  large  infusion  of  their 
own  is  to  be  found,  should  have  been  derived  from  a  people  in  a 
lower  grade  of  civilization  than  themselves.  A  lower  civilization 
would  not  have  required,  and  could  scarcely  have  admitted,  the 
use  of  a  language  of  such  precision  of  structure  and  harmony  of 
combination  as  that  of  Madagascar  exhibits.  Internal  evidence 
would  thus  seem  to  favor  the  opinion  that  the  Malagasy  was  de- 
rived from  a  language  rich,  flexible,  and  exact,  which  must  have 
belonged  to  a  civilized  people,  whose  intellectual  culture  it  reflect- 
ed. Such  opinion  seems  to  have  been  entertained  by  Raffles, 
Humboldt,  Leyden,  Crawford,  and  others,  who  have  directed  their 
inquiries  to  the  migrations  of  the  races  by  whom  this  language  is 
used.  Baron  Humboldt,  brother  of  the  celebrated  traveler,  thus 


504  APPENDIX. 

expresses  his  opinion  on  this  subject :  "  There  is  no  doubt  that  the 
Malagasy  belongs  to  the  family  of  the  Malayan  languages,  and 
bears  the  greatest  affinity  to  the  languages  spoken  in  Java,  Suma- 
tra, and  the  whole  Indian  Archipelago.  But  it  remains  entirely 
enigmatical  in  what  manner  and  at  what  period  this  Malayan  pop- 
ulation has  made  its  way  to  Madagascar.  Of  Sanscrit  words 
there  is  a  certain  number  in  the  Malagasy  language."*  The  pe- 
riod at  which  this  migration  took  place  still  remains  unknown; 
but  the  evidence  which  tradition  affords  that  the  vessels  of  the 
Polynesian  races  were  formerly  much  larger  than  they  are  at  pres- 
ent, and  the  number  of  well-authenticated  instances  of  long  voy- 
ages and  vast  distances  being  traversed  by  the  natives  of  Polynesia 
in  recent  years,  leave  little  room  for  doubt  as  to  the  means  by 
which  they  have  spread  themselves  over  the  widely-extended  re- 
gions which  they  now  occupy. 

But  few  verbal  coincidences  have  yet  been  discovered  between 
the  Malagasy  and  the  languages  of  the  adjacent  coast  of  Africa. 
"We  are  not,  however,  to  conclude  that  no  resemblances  exist,  for 
we  know  but  little  of  the  languages  of  the  eastern  coast  of  Africa. 
The  few  coincidences  which  have  been  traced  are  interesting,  and 
throw  light  upon  important  events  in  the  past  history  of  the  Mal- 
agasy. There  does  not  seem  to  be  any  resemblance  in  verbal 
form  or  grammatical  structure  between  the  Malagasy  and  the  lan- 
guages spoken  on  the  eastern  coast  of  Africa  to  the  southward  of 
Delagoa  Bay ;  but  there  appears  to  be  a  resemblance  amounting 
to  identity  between  a  number  of  words  used  by  the  Malagasy  and 
the  natives  of  the  Mozambique  coast  and  of  the  adjacent  interior ; 
while,  with  one  or  two  exceptions,  no  resemblance  can  be  traced 
to  words  of  corresponding  import  in  Malayan  or  Polynesian.  In 
Koelle's  "  Polyglotta  Africana"  the  following  words  appear,  which 
are  almost  identical  with  the  same  words  in  Malagasy : 

*  Appendix  to  Hist,  of  Madagascar,  vol.  I,  p.  492. 


APPENDIX. 


505 


English.  African. 

eyes  maso  —  Marawi  dialect 

"  mazo  —  Nyambanco  dialect 

cow  or  ox     nombe  —  thirteen   different 
dialects  with  slight  vari- 
ations 
(  mbusi  ~\ 

goat          -I  mbozi  I 
(^  mboz  J 

fowl  koku  and  kuku 

cat  paka 

dog  mboa  in  twelve  different  di- 

alects, with  few  and  very 
slight  variations 


Malagasy.       Malayan. 


ombe,  or 
omby 


osy 


mata 

lembu  and 

sapl 

kambing 


burong 
kuching 


akohu 
saka  and 

kary 
amboa  and  anjing 

alikia 


Horned  cattle  and  dogs,  wild  and  tame,  appear  to  have  existed 
from  a  remote  period  in  Madagascar;  and  ombe  or  omly  is  the 
name  for  cattle  both  wild  and  tame,  though  they  are  different  from 
each  other,  the  tame  cattle  belonging  to  the  zebu  species  being 
distinguished  by  the  lump  between  the  shoulders,  and  the  immense 
herds  of  wild  cattle  which  exist  in  the  unfrequented  parts  of  the 
island  having  straight  backs  like  the  cattle  of  Europe.  Amboa  is 
the  name  for  the  domesticated  dog,  and  also  for  the  wild  dog  of 
the  forest.  These  and  the  other  Malagasy  names  of  animals  above 
specified  are  evidently  of  African  origin,  and  favor  the  opinion  that 
the  animals  which  they  designate  were  derived  from  the  same 
country.  Increased  acquaintance  with  the  languages  of  Africa 
will  probably  furnish  additional  evidence  of  the  relationship  be- 
tween the  inhabitants  of  Madagascar  and  those  of  the  adjacent 
continent,  and  may  perhaps  assist  in  tracing  the  origin  of  the  Ne- 
grito races  of  Polynesia.  •- 

In  Madagascar  itself  different  dialects  exist.  The  spoken  lan- 
guage of  the  Hovas  and  others  inhabiting  the  interior  provinces 
differs  from  that  on  the  coasts  where  the  ng  is  frequently  used. 
Still,  in  its  verbal  form  and  grammatical  structure,  one  language 
may  be  said  to  pervade  the  entire  country ;  and  though  the  intro- 
duction of  letters  has  been  confined  to  the  language  of  the  Hovas, 


506  APPENDIX. 

and  dictionaries  and  grammars  exist  in  that  language  alone,  these 
may  be  regarded  as  exhibiting  the  peculiar  features  of  the  language 
of  the  whole  island. 

The  great  peculiarity  of  the  structure  of  this  language  consists 
hi  the  facility,  uniformity,  and  precision  with  which,  by  means  of 
prefixes  and  affixes,  the  roots  or  primitive  words  of  the  language 
may,  according  to  fixed  rules,  be  rendered  capable  of  expressing 
different  meanings  to  an  extent  that  is  truly  astonishing.  The 
Eev.  D.  Griffiths,  in  his  Malagasy  and  English  Grammar,  the  latest 
and  most  extensive  grammar  yet  published,  states  that  some  single 
roots  will  produce  two  hundred  words  of  different  orthography  and 
signification.  There  is  nothing  approaching  to  this  extent  of  com- 
pound words  in  any  of  the  Polynesian  dialects ;  and  minute  dis- 
tinctions seem  redundant  in  the  Malagasy  when  we  are  told  that 
there  are  twenty  different  words  for  expressing  the  manner  of 
growth  of  the  horns  of  an  ox,  and  thirty  words  to  signify  the  sev- 
eral modes  in  which  the  natives  plait  their  hair.  This  multipli- 
cation of  words  for  varying  shades  of  meaning,  and  the  facili ty  of 
forming  many  compound  words  from  a  single  root,  adds  to  the 
copiousness  of  the  language,  which  often  combines  conciseness 
with  great  precision  of  meaning.  -  Thus,  mody  is  "  to  go  home," 
tampody,  "  to  go  out  and  return  home  the  same  day." 

Much  precision  of  meaning  is  often  manifest  in  the  use  of  nouns 
formed  from  adjectives  of  quality,  as,  ratsy,  bad ;  haratsiana,  bad- 
ness, wickedness  in  the  abstract ;  faharatsiana,  wickedness  in  ac- 
tion :  foam,  good ;  hatsarana,  goodness  in  the  abstract ;  fahatsarana, 
goodness  in  operation.  Thus,  hatsarana  is  an  attribute  of  God — 
his  essential  goodness ;  fahatsarana  is  his  goodness  in  action — the 
benevolence  he  exercises. 

Most  of  the  words  are  compound  words,  but  some  are  roots,  and 
exist  in  no  simpler  form.  The  roots  generally  consist  of  words 
of  two  or  three  syllables,  but  in  some  cases  of  only  one,  and  for 
the  most  part  they  are  nouns  or  passive  participles.  Most  of  the 
roots  and  compound  words  are  occasionally  doubled,  which  in- 
creases or  diminishes  the  force  of  the  original  word. 

To  the  language  of  Madagascar,  as  well  as  to  those  of  Poly- 


APPENDIX.  507 

nesia,  the  missionaries  have  judiciously  adapted  the  Roman  char- 
acter ;  and  though  there  are  a  few  sounds  which  seem  to  be  inter- 
mediate between  those  expressed  by  two  consonants  in  European 
languages,  or  to  blend  two  consonants  in  one  sound,  this  apparent 
inconvenience  is  of  little  consequence  when  compared  with  the 
obvious  advantages  of  the  Roman  letters. 

The  Malagasy  alphabet  consists  of  twenty-one  letters — sixteen 
consonants  and  five  vowels.  The  i  and  y  have  the  same  sound, 
but  the  latter  is  uniformly  the  terminal  vowel.  The  letters  omit- 
ted from  the  English  alphabet  are  C,  Q,  V,  W,  and  Z.  G  is  al- 
ways pronounced  hard,  as  in  go.  C  is  expressed  by  S  or  K.  U 
is  expressed  by  io.  The  Continental  pronunciation  is  given  to  the 
vowels.  The  sound  usually  attached  to  the  letter  u  in  French, 
and  in  the  English  word  rule,  is  of  very  frequent  occurrence ;  but 
the  letter  u  is  omitted  in  the  Malagasy  alphabet,  and  the  sound 
usually  expressed  by  u  is  signified  by  o.  This  causes  different 
sounds  to  be  represented  by  the  same  letter,  and  presents  also  to 
the  eye  of  the  European  reader  the  sign  of  a  sound  which  is  not 
pronounced,  and  would  thus  seem  likely  to  increase  the  difficulty 
of  teaching  European  languages  to  the  natives ;  but  the  letter  u 
may  easily  be  added  to  the  Malagasy  alphabet  whenever  the  re- 
quirements of  the  people  render  it  desirable,  and  the  letter  o  be 
then  employed  only  to  express  its  usual  sound  in  other  languages. 

The  sounds  of  the  Malagasy  language  are  more  mascuh'ne  and 
forcible  than  those  of  Polynesia,  but  scarcely  less  harmonious. 
Consonants  occur  much  more  frequently  in  the  former ;  and 
though,  as  a  general  rule,  each  syllable  consists  of  a  consonant 
and  vowel,  a  number  of  double  consonants,  which  readily  coalesce 
in  one  sound,  and  allow  of  easy  articulation,  are  admitted  ;  such 
as,  dr,  tr,  mb,  mp,  nd,  ndr,  ng,  nj,  nk,  nt,  and  nts.  Hence,  also,  for 
the  sake  of  euphony,  several  consonants  are  changed  when  they 
follow  other  consonants :  thus, /changes  into/)  after  m;  h  changes 
into  k  after  n  ;  I  changes  into  d  after  n,  and  t  changes  into  d  after 
n ;  v  changes  into  b  after  m ;  v  changes  into  d  after  w,  and  z 
changes  into  j  after  n  ;  nr  assumes  d,  and  becomes  ndr  ;  and  t  is 
inserted  after  n  before  s,  as  in  sivy  (intsivy),  "  nine  times." 


508  APPENDIX. 

The  syllables,  with  the  exceptions  above  specified,  usually  con- 
sist of  a  consonant  and  a  vowel,  and  the  uniform  vowel  termina- 
tions of  the  words  gives  a  peculiar  softness  and  harmony  to  the 
tones  of  native  speech.  The  vowels  at  the  end  of  the  words  are 
often  so  slightly  sounded  as  to  be  scarcely  perceptible  to  the  ear 
of  a  stranger  unacquainted  with  the  structure  of  the  language. 

Thero  is  but  one  article  in  the  language — ny,  which  is  definite ; 
the  noun  without  the  article  is  indefinite. 

The  nouns  are  roots,  derivatives,  or  compounds,  and  admit  of 
no  inflections  to  signify  number,  case,  or  gender.  These  are  in- 
dicated by  words  added  to  the  noun,  as  the  ordinal  numbers  or 
adjectives  of  number.  Case  is  indicated  by  the  position  of  the 
noun  in  the  sentence  or  the  use  of  prepositions,  and  gender  is  de- 
termined by  the  addition  of  the  word  Idhy  for  male,  and  vavy  for 
female.  Most  of  the  nouns  are  derivatives  from  either  verbs  or 
adjectives.  Those  from  verbs  correspond  in  signification  with  the 
meaning  of  the  part  of  the  verb  whence  they  are  taken,  as,  anatra, 
instruction ;  mianatra,  to  learn ;  fanarana,  means  of  instruction, 
as  copy  or  lesson ;  mpianatra,  scholar ;  mpampianatra,  teacher. 

Adjectives  are  not  numerous,  and  they  admit  of  no  inflection. 
Some  are  roots ;  as,  tsara,  good ;  ratsy,  bad.  Many  are  formed 
by  affixing  ma  to  the  roots ;  as,  loto,  filth ;  maloto,  dirty ;  dio,  pu- 
rity ;  madio,  pure,  uncontaminated.  Adjectives  usually  follow  the 
noun ;  as,  trano  avo,  house  lofty ;  rano  marivo,  water  shallow ;  but 
they  admit  of  being  placed  before  the  noun  with  the  article  inter- 
vening ;  as,  avo  ny  trano,  lofty  (is)  the  house ;  marivo  mj  rano, 
shallow  (is)  the  water.  The  comparative  degree  is  formed  by  the 
addition  of  the  word  noho,  or  repeating  the  positive  and  adding 
the  word  koTcoa ;  as,  foam,  good ;  tsara  noho  izy,  better  than  he ; 
or,  tsara  tsara  kokoa,  better.  The  superlative  is  formed  by  adding 
the  word  indrindra,  exceedingly;  as,  tsara  indrindra,  best;  or, 
tsara  dia  tsara,  good,  indeed  good,  best. 

The  Malagasy  system  of  numbers  is  singularly  extensive  and 
complete,  enabling  the  natives  to  express  cardinal  numbers  with 
great  facility  and  precision,  to  an  extent  far  beyond  what  their 
present  state  of  civilization  would  seem  to  require ;  and  they  are 


APPENDIX.  500 

generally  great  adepts  in  calculation.  The  first  ten  numbers  are 
independent  words.  The  numbers  from  10  to  100,  zato,  are  ex- 
pressed by  adding  the  units  to  folo,  the  word  for  ten,  which,  for 
the  sake  of  euphony,  is  changed  into  polo.  Thus,  twenty,  two 
tens,  is  roapolo.  The  hundreds  up  to  a  thousand,  arivo,  are  count- 
ed in  the  same  manner.  The  thousands  in  the  same  manner  pro- 
duce the  myriad,  alina ;  and  thence  to  a  hundred  thousand  and  a 
million.  The  word  ambiny,  signifying  add,  is  inserted  between 
the  units  and  the  tens ;  and,  in  reciting,  the  numbers  always  com- 
mence with,  the  lowest,  or  unit,  and  rise  to  the  highest.  Thus, 
iraik  anibiny  folo,  one  add  ten,  viz.,  eleven ;  or,  roambi  telopolo,  am- 
lizato,  two  add  three  tens,  add  one  hundred,  viz.,  a  hundred  and 
thirty-two. 

The  cardinal  numbers  are : 

z'.s-rt,  and 

iray 

roa 

telo 

efatra 

dimy 

The  ordinals  are  formed  by  prefixing  voa  to  the  first  and  faJia 
to  the  other  cardinal  numbers,  thus ; 


enina 

6 

zato 

100  hundred 

fito 

7 

arivo 

1,000  thousand 

2 

valo 

8 

alina 

10,000  ten  thousand 

3 

sivy 

9 

hetsy 

100,000  hundred  thousand 

4 

folo 

10 

tapitrisa 

1,000,000  million 

5 

voalahany          first 
faharoa  second 


fahapoh  tenth 

fahazato  hundredth 


fahatelo  third 

Fractional  parts  are  expressed  by  prefixing  ampatra,  as  am- 
patraroa,  a  second  (part) ;  ampatratelo,  a  third  (part). 

The  number  of  times  is  expressed  by  prefixing  in  to  the  cardi- 
nal numbers ;  thus,  indroa,  twice ;  intelo,  thrice ;  imato,  a  hundred 
times.  The  number  of  days  is  signified  by  prefixing  ha  or  he  to 
the  cardinal  number,  and  changing  the  termination  into  ana; 
thus: 

hateloana  three  days 

hadimiana  five  days 

hqfitoana  seven  days 

Or  they  simply  prefix  the  number  to  the  word  for  day ;  as,  roa 
andro,  two  days. 


510 


APPENDIX. 


The  pronouns  are  some  of  them  numerous,  especially  the  de- 
monstrative, which  are  often  apparently  adverbs  of  place.  The 
personal  pronouns  are : 

Nominative  Case. 


Singular. 

1st  Person    izaho,  or  aho  I 

2d        "        hianaa  them 

3d       "        izy  he,  she,  or  it 


Plural. 


1st  Pers.  isikia 


izaJiay 


2d    "    hianareo 


we,  including  the 
speaker  and  par- 
ties spoken  to. 

we,  excluding  the 
party  spoken  to, 
but  including 
the  speaker  and 
party  spoken  of. 

ye,  or  you. 


3d    "    izy,  orizarcoihej. 


Possessive  inseparable  Affixes. 


ko,  o 
nao,  ao 
ny 


1st  Pers.  Sing. 
2d         " 
3d         " 
1st  Pers.  Plural   ntsikia 
"  nay,  ay 

2d          "  nareo,  areo 

3d          "  ny 


my,  of  me,  by  me. 

thy,  of  thee,  by  thee. 

his,  hers,  its,  by  him,  etc. 

our,  by  us,  including  speaker  and  spoken  to. 

our,  by  us,  excluding  the  party  spoken  to. 

your,  by  you. 

their,  by  them. 


1st  Pers.  Sing. 

2d          "  anao 

3d          "  azy 

1st  Pers.  Plural  antsiki 

"  anay 

2d          ' '  anareo 

3d          "  azy 


Objective  governed  by  Active  Verbs, 
ahy 


me. 

thee. 

him,  her,  it. 

we,  including  speaker  and  party  spoken  to. 

we,  excluding  the  party  spoken  to. 

ye. 

them. 


The  demonstrative  pronouns,  which  are  abundant,  add  greatly 
to  the  precision  of  meaning  by  pointing  out  definitively  the  posi- 
tion, nearness,  or  distance  of  the  persons  or  things  spoken  of. 
The  following  are  examples :  ao,  there,  at  a  short  distance ;  eo, 
there,  nearer  at  hand ;  to,  close  by,  this  one ;  itsy,  this,  or  there ; 
ity,  this ;  iny,  that ;  itikitra,  this,  in  this  place ;  iretsy,  those ;  irery, 
those  within  sight,  but  more  distant  than  iretsy ;  irony,  these; 


APPENDIX.  511 

izato,  this  one ;  ircroa,  those  yonder.  Besides  these  there  are  rel- 
ative pronouns  :  izay  and  izany,  both  meaning  that  or  which ;  also 
interrogative  pronouns  :  iza,  zovy,  who,  which ;  inona,  •what ;  na- 
hoana,  why ;  alcory,  how,  etc. 

Among  the  verbs  there  is  one  substantive  verb,  misy,  signifying 
there  is,  or  there  are ;  and  there  are  three  others  which  are  used 
as  auxiliaries,  viz.,  mety,  mahay,  and  maliazo.  Mcty  signifies  right, 
fit,  lawful.  Mahay  signifies  knowledge,  skill,  ability.  Mahazo 
signifies  to  get,  to  obtain — physical  ability. 

The  moods  of  the  verbs  are  the  indicative  and  the  imperative, 
the  subjunctive  and  potential  being  formed  of  the  indicative,  with 
parts  of  the  auxiliary  verb.  The  tenses  are  past,  present,  and 
future.  Additional  tenses  expressive  of  more  definite  time  than 
past  and  future  are  formed  by  certain  particles  and  parts  of  the 
substantive  verb.  The  tenses  are  formed  by  the  change  of  the 
initial  letters  and  auxiliary  particles. 

The  roots  of  the  verbs  are  usually  of  a  participial  nature ;  some 
of  these  are  also  nouns.  The  nouns  are  used  with  the  article  ny 
prefixed.  These  roots  are  used  as  verbs  by  the  addition  of  forma- 
tives,  among  which  are  the  following  prefixing  the  word  voa  (ua 
in  Polynesian),  which  signifies  done,  completed  by  some  external 
agent,  not  by  any  internal  process.  By  adding  ena,  ina,  ana,  or 
aina,  and  sometimes  vina,  to  the  root,  the  signification  is  particip- 
ial. By  prefixing  mi  to  the  root,  also  by  prefixing  mampi  to  the 
root,  this  expresses  the  cause ;  and  farther,  by  prefixing  mifampi, 
which  signifies  reciprocity  of  cause,  as, 

misotro  I  drink. 

mampisotro  I  cause  another  to  drink. 

mifampisotro          they  cause  one  another  to  drink. 

There  are  a  number  of  other  forms  of  verbs.  The  subjoined 
paradigm  of  a  regular  verb  will  convey  some  idea  of  the  precision 
and  extent  to  which  a  single  root  can  be  used. 


512 


APPENDIX. 


o 

1 

y 

1  F.  in  mampampan 

mampampanolo 
nampampanolo 
hampampanolo 
ampampanoloina 
nampampanoloina 
hampampanoloina 

mampampanolda 
aoka  hampampanol 
—  ampampanoloy 

hampampanolo 

ampampanoloana 
nampampanoloana 
hampampanoloana 

fampampanolo 
mpampampanolo 
fampampanoloana 

1" 
1 

5 

g 

'mampifampanolo 
nampifampanolo 
hamjlifampanolo 

o 

• 

1  F.  in  mampan 

mampanolo  . 
nampanolo  . 
hampanolo  . 
ampanoloina  . 
nampanoloina 
hampanoloina 

mampanoloa  . 
aoka  hampanol 
—  ampanoloy  . 

hampanolo  . 

ampanoloana 
nampanoloana 
hampanoloana 

fampanolo 
mpampanolo  . 
fampanoloana 

S 
f 

5 

.a 

mampifanolo  . 
nampifanolo  . 
hampifanolo  . 

03    03 

. 

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e:  a  a 

o 

,« 

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.2  o  o 

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o 

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O  *Q  'Q 

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D 

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g 

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S  o  o  z**  H  a 
•s  M  S2  a  o3  cs 
g-'p,'p,  o3  a  -a 

all^T 

mampisolda 
aoka  hampis 
jo.  imp.  amp 

hampisolo  . 

sea 

P| 
"3  m  .2 

.2  'P.'  PH 

g^a  a 

UJ 

fampisolo  . 
mpampisolo 
fampisoloani 

S 
•S 

mifampifano 
nifampifanol 

hifainpifauo] 

« 

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5H  APPENDIX. 

Without  extending  these  remarks,  which  are  only  intended  to 
convey  a  general  notice  of  some  of  the  peculiarities  of  the  lan- 
guage, it  may  be  observed  that  the  natives  generally  speak  their 
own  language  correctly ;  that  public  speaking  is  frequently  prac- 
ticed, and  good  speaking  highly  appreciated.  The  proceedings 
of  the  government  are  announced  in  public  meetings  or  national 
assemblies.  Courts  of  justice  are  always  open,  and  suitors  plead 
their  own  causes.  No  native  literature  yet  exists ;  but  songs  and 
proverbs  are  numerous,  the  latter  often  sententious,  pointed,  and 
forcible.  The  missionaries  appear  to  have  found  no  difficulty  in 
expressing  any  ideas  they  wished  to  convey  to  the  minds  of  the 
people.  The  subjoined  translation  of  the  Lord's  Prayer  into 
Malagasy  will  give  some  idea  of  the  structure  of  the  language : 

Rainay  Izay  any  an-danitra,  Hasino  ny  anaranao.  Ampandrosoy  ny 
fanjakanao.  Atavy  ny  sitrapo-nao  aty  an-tany,  tahaky  ny  any  an-danitra. 
Omeo  anay  anio  izay  hanina  sahaza  ho  anay.  Ary  mamelk  ny  trosanay, 
tahaky  ny  famelanay  ny  mitrosa  aminay.  Ary  aza  mitarikia  anay  ho  amy 
ny,  fakam-panahy,  fa  manafaha  anay  amy  ny  ratsy :  F'  Anao  ny  fanjakana. 
sy  ny  hery,  ary  ny  voninahitra,  mandrakizay.  Araena. — Matt.,  vi.,  9-13. 


THE  END. 


LA     PLATA: 

THE  ARGENTINE  CONFEDERATION 

ASI> 

PARAGUAY. 

Being  a  Narrative  of  the  Exploration  of  the  Tributaries  of  the  River  La 
Plata  and  Adjacent  Countries,  during  the  Years  1853,  '54,  '55,  and  '56, 
under  the  Orders  of  the  United  States  Government.  By  THOMAS  J. 
PAGE,  U.S.N.,  Commander  of  the  Expedition.  One  Volume  Large 
Octavo,  with  Map  and  numerous  Illustrations.  Muslin,  $3  00. 

This  Volume  contains  the  Official  Narrative  of  one  of  the  most  important  Expeditions 
ever  sent  out  by  our  Government.  The  vast  region  drained  by  the  liiver  La  Plata  and  its 
tributaries  was  closed  to  commerce  and  navigation  by  the  rigid  Colonial  Laws  of  Spain, 
the  civil  wars  which  followed  the  Independence,  and  the  subsequent  selfish  policy  of 
Rosas,  the  tyrant  of  Buenos  Ayres.  After  the  defeat  and  flight  of  Rosas,  one  of  the  first 
acts  of  Urquiza,  the  able  and  enlightened  Director  of  the  Argentine  Confederation,  was 
the  decree  of  August  28, 1S52,  declaring  the  waters  of  the  Confederation  free  to  the  flags 
of  all  nations. 

Our  Government  was  the  first  to  avail  itself  of  this  decree.  Early  In  1853  the  steamer 
Water  Witch  was  placed  under  the  command  of  Lieutenant  PAGE,  with  instructions  to  ex- 
plore the  Rivers  of  La  Plata,  and  report  upon  their  navigability  and  adaptation  to  com- 
merce. Lieutenant  PAGE  executed  his  commission  with  rare  fidelity  and  intelligence,  and 
has  embodied  the  results  in  this  volume.  The  explorations  described  in  the  Narrative 
embrace  an  extent  of  3600  miles  of  river  navigation,  and  4400  miles  of  journey  by  land  in 
Paraguay  and  the  Argentine  Confederation.  The  River  Paraguay  alone  was  found  to  be 
navigable,  at  low  water,  by  a  steamer  drawing  nine  feet,  for  more  than  2000  miles  from 
the  ocean.  The  basin  of  La  Plata  is  almost  eqnal  in  extent  to  the  Mississippi,  and  not  in- 
ferior in  salubrity  of  climate  and  fertility  of  soil,  while  the  headwaters  of  its  rivers  pene- 
trate the  richest  mineral  provinces  of  Brazil  and  Bolivia.  The  products  of  this  region 
must  find  their  outlet  through  the  River  La  Plata.  The  population  numbers  scarcely  one 
person  to  a  square  mile,  but  great  inducements  to  emigration  are  now  offered  by  the  Ar- 
gentine Confederation.  The  commerce  of  the  country,  already  considerable,  is  capable  of 
immediate  and  indefinite  increase. 

Lieutenant  PAGE'S  Narrative  contains  ample  information  respecting  the  soil,  climate, 
and  productions  of  the  country,  and  the  manners,  habits,  and  customs  of  the  people.  A 
full  account  Is  given  of  the  unfortunate  rupture  with  Paraguay,  showing  conclusively  that 
the  attack  upon  the  Water  Witch  was  altogether  unwarranted,  and  the  allegations  by  which 
President  Lopez  attempted  to  justify  it  entirely  destitute  of  truth.  An  interesting  and 
valuable  account  of  the  Jesuit  Mission  in  La  Plata  is  appended  to  the  Narrative. 

The  Illustrations  comprise  the  accurate  Map  of  the  Country  prepared  by  the  orders  of 
our  Government,  Portraits  of  Urquiza,  Lopez,  Francia,  and  Loyola,  and  numerous  En- 
gravings of  Scenery,  Character,  and  Incident. 

Published  by  HARPER  &  BROTHERS, 

Franklin  Square,  New  York. 


HABFEB  &  BBOTOEHS  will  send  the  above  Work  by  Mail,  postage  paid  (for  any  dis- 
tance in  the  United  States  under  3000  miles),  on  receipt  of  $3  00. 


A  Great  Work  Completed. 

"The  most  magnificent  contribution  of  the  present  century  to  the  cause  of 
geographical  literature." 


DR.  EARTH'S 

NORTH  AND  CENTRAL  AFRICA. 

Travels  and  Discoveries  in  North  and  Central  Africa.  Being  a  Journal  of 
an  Expedition  undertaken  under  the  Auspices  of  H.B.M's  Government, 
in  the  Years  1849—1855.  By  HENRY  EARTH,  Ph.D.,  D.C.L.,  Fellow 
of  the  Koyal  Geographical  and  Asiatic  Societies,  &c.,  &c.  With  a  Map 
and  numerous  elegant  Illustrations.  Complete  in  3  vols.  8vo,  Muslin, 
$7  50 ;  Half  Calf,  $10  50. 

The  researches  of  Dr.  Barth  are  of  the  highest  interest.  Few  men  have  existed  so  quali- 
fied, both  by  intellectual  ability  and  a  vigorous  bodily  constitution,  for  the  perilous  part 
of  an  African  discoverer  as  Dr.  Barth. — London  Times. 

It  richly  merits  all  the  commendation  bestowed  upon  it  by  "the  leading  journal"  of  Eu- 
rope.— Corr.  National  Intelligencer. 

Every  chapter  presents  matter  of  more  original  interest  than  an  ordinary  volume  of 
travels.  This  is  high  praise,  but  it  is  due  to  the  intelligence  and  zeal  of  Dr.  Bartb,  who 
pursued  his  adventures  with  unflinching  courage,  and  neglected  no  opportunities.  Hir 
diacoveriee,  in  fact,  are  parallel  with  those  of  Dr.  Livingstone  in  the  South.  \Ve  confess 
that  such  a  relation  has  for  us  an  intense  interest ;  we  are  pure  that  no  serious  reader  will 
be  disappointed  in  the  narrative  of  Dr.  Barth,  which,  sprinkled  with  anecdotes,  varied  by 
glittering  descriptions  of  landscapes  and  manners,  written  with  vigor  and  simplicity,  and 
disclosing  amid  the  gloom  of  Africa  the  secrets  of  centuries,  is  a  rich  repertory  of  knowl- 
edge, and  deserves  to  take  its  place  among  the  classics  of  travel. — Itondon  Leader. 

For  extent  and  variety  of  subjects,  the  volumes  before  us  greatly  surpass  every  other 
work  on  African  travel  with  which  it  has  been  our  fortune  to  meet.  As  an  indefatigable 
traveler,  Dr.  Earth's  merits  are  undoubted. — London  Athenaeum. 

Dr.  Earth's  volumes  contain  the  best  account  of  the  interior  of  Negroland  we  have  yet 
had  north  of  nine  degrees  of  latitude,  and  he  himself  is  the  model  of  an  explorer — patient, 
persevering,  and  resolute. — London  Spectator. 

A  traveler  of  wide  and  varied  experience,  a  close  observer  of  people  and  things,  a  con- 
scientious historian,  and  withal  a  savan  occupying  a  position  of  distinguished  merit,  Dr. 
Earth's  records  will  be  a  standard  work  in  the  library  of  every  scholar. — X.  Y.  Herald. 

Dr  Barth  has  written  with  marvelous  clearness,  and  from  a  mind  at  once  full  and  crit- 
ical. No  one  who  wishes  to  know  Africa  can  afford  to  dispense  with  his  work.— Boston 
Traveller. 

It  is  the  most  magnificent  contribution  of  the  present  century  to  the  cause  of  geograph- 
ical knowledge.  To  have  accomplished  his  task  as  he  has  done,  in  the  face  of  innumer- 
able obstacles  and  dangers,  indicates  the  possession  of  those  qualities — that  enthusiasm 
of  discovery,  that  shrewdness  of  observation,  and  that  practical  tact  —  which  lend  the 
charm  of  heroic  and  romantic  interest  to  his  personal  narrative.  The  discoveries  made 
are  of  the  highest  importance  as  bearing  upon  the  future  destiny  of  the  African  continent. 
JV.  Y.  Evangelist. 

The  most  important  contribution  to  geographical  science  that  has  been  made  in  onr 
time.  Thousands  of  readers  in  our  country  will  be  anxious  to  get  possession  of  this  treas- 
ure of  knowledge. — N.  Y.  Observer. 

One  of  the  most  important  works  of  the  kind  which  has  appeared  for  an  age.—  Lutheran 
Observer. 

It  can  not  fail  to  find  its  way  into  the  libraries  of  most  scholars.— Lynchburg  Virginian. 

The  personal  details  give  the  work  great  interest—  Philadelphia  Press. 

The  heart  of  Africa  is  at  last  laid  open  to  our  view.  It  is  no  longer  a  land  of  darkness 
and  of  the  shadow  of  death.  It  is  no  longer  a  desert  waste,  a  pestilential  marsh,  or  the 
hiding-place  of  wild  beasts  and  bloody  men.  The  physical  features,  ihe  natural  products, 
the  races,  the  governments,  the  religions  of  the  vast  interior  of  Africa  are  spread  out  be- 
fore us  with  a  minuteness  of  detail  that  leaves  hardly  any  thing  to  be  added  to  our  knowl- 
edge upon  these  several  points.  Dr.  Earth's  work  is  a  magnificent  contribution  to  geo- 
graphical and  ethnological  science. — A".  1'.  Independent. 

Published  by  HARPER  &  BROTHERS,  Franklin  Square,  New  York, 

E^3  HABPEE  &  BEOTHKBS  will  send  the  above  Work  by  Mail,  postage  paid,  to  any  part 
of  the  United  States,  on  receipt  of  the  Money. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 

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